Breakdown of Где мыло и полотенце? Он моется.
и
and
где
where / wherever
он
he / it (for a masculine noun) / it (for a neuter noun)
мыться
to wash oneself
мыло
soap
полотенце
towel
Questions & Answers about Где мыло и полотенце? Он моется.
Why does моется end in -ся and not -сь?
The reflexive ending changes depending on the letter before it. You use -ся after consonants and -сь after vowels. The base verb for "he washes" is моет, which ends in the consonant т. Therefore, we add -ся to get моется.
Why do we use the reflexive verb моется instead of just моет?
The standard verb мыть means to wash a specific object, like a dish or a window. If you want to say someone is washing themselves, you must use the reflexive form мыться. The -ся ending acts like "himself" in this sentence.
How is the ending -тся in моется pronounced?
The letter combination -тся at the end of reflexive verbs is a special exception in Russian pronunciation. Instead of sounding out the letters separately, it is pronounced together like "tsa" (similar to the "ts" in "cats" followed by a short "a" sound).
Why is there no word for "are" in the first sentence?
In Russian, the present tense of the verb "to be" (am, is, are) is almost always left out. To say "Where are the soap and the towel?", you simply say Где мыло и полотенце? (Where soap and towel?).
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