Breakdown of Он не прав.
не
not
он
he / it (for a masculine noun) / it (for a neuter noun)
прав
right, correct (as in "you are right")
Questions & Answers about Он не прав.
Where is the verb "is" in this sentence?
In Russian, the verb "to be" is skipped in the present tense. Instead of saying "He is not right", you just say "He not right" (Он не прав). If you wanted to say this in the future tense (like the verbs in your current lesson!), you would actually need to add the future form of "to be" as a helper word: Он не будет прав (He will not be right).
Does прав change if I am talking about a woman?
Yes! It changes to match the gender of the person you are talking about. If you are talking about a woman, you add an -а to the end to make it Она не права (She is not right). If you are talking about multiple people, you use the plural form: Они не правы (They are not right).
Is прав a regular adjective?
It is a "short-form" adjective. Short forms are used to describe a current state or a fact about a situation, like being right or wrong in a specific moment. They change for gender and number, but unlike regular long-form adjectives, they don't change for cases.
Why does the в at the end of прав sound like an English "f"?
This happens because of a pronunciation rule called "final consonant devoicing". In Russian, when a strong, vibrating consonant (like the "v" sound of в) is at the very end of a word, it is pronounced as its softer, breathy partner (the "f" sound). So, прав is pronounced "praf".
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