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Questions & Answers about Лёгкая работа.
Why does the letter г sound like a "kh" in Лёгкая?
In Russian, the letter г is usually pronounced like a hard English "g". However, the words for "easy" or "light" (лёгкий) and "soft" (мягкий) are special exceptions. In Лёгкая, the г is pronounced like the Russian х (a breathy "kh" sound). When spoken, it sounds like "лёхкая".
Why does the adjective Лёгкая end in -ая here?
Russian adjectives must change their endings to match the gender of the noun they describe. The noun here is работа (work), which is feminine because it ends in -а. To match it, the dictionary form of the adjective (лёгкий) changes to its feminine form, taking the -ая ending.
Is there a verb missing if this is translated as "The work is easy"?
Russian drops the verb "to be" (is, am, are) in the present tense. Depending on the context of the conversation, Лёгкая работа can just be a noun phrase meaning "Easy work", or it can be a complete sentence meaning "The work is easy."
Can Лёгкая mean anything else besides "easy"?
Yes! Aside from meaning "easy" (the opposite of difficult), it also means "light" in weight (the opposite of heavy). For example, if you picked up a very small bag, you could say it is лёгкая.