Questions & Answers about Сегодня никто не видел медведей.
Why does the word for bears end in -ей here?
The dictionary form is медведь, which is a masculine noun ending in a soft sign (-ь). For nouns ending in -ь, the Genitive plural ending is -ей. Because bears are animate (living beings), their Accusative plural form matches their Genitive plural form, making it медведей when they are the object of the sentence.
The sentence literally translates to nobody didn't see. Is this double negative correct in Russian?
Yes, Russian strictly requires a double negative! When you use a negative pronoun like никто (nobody), никогда (never), or ничего (nothing), you must also put не right before the verb.
Why is видел in the masculine singular form if nobody might refer to multiple people?
Since the verb is negative (не видел), is медведей in the Genitive case or the Accusative case?
It can technically be either, and conveniently they look exactly the same! Direct objects of negated verbs often take the Genitive case in Russian. But even if we treat it as a regular Accusative direct object, animate plural nouns always borrow their Accusative form from the Genitive. In both cases, the word becomes медведей.
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