Breakdown of У нас сильная жажда и нет надежды, поэтому мы ни о чём не мечтаем.
и
and
не
not
мы
we
о
about (о, об, обо)
мечтать
to dream
нас
us
у
at, by
нет
there is no / is not present
поэтому
so (therefore)
сильный
strong
ничто
nothing (nominative)
надежда
hope
жажда
thirst
Questions & Answers about У нас сильная жажда и нет надежды, поэтому мы ни о чём не мечтаем.
Why is 'about nothing' written as three words (ни о чём) instead of using the standard word for 'nothing'?
The standard word for 'nothing' is ничто. However, when you use a preposition like о (about) with a negative pronoun, the preposition forces its way right into the middle of the word. This splits it into three separate parts: ни + о + чём (which is the prepositional case form of что).
Why is there a не before мечтаем if we already used a negative phrase (ни о чём)?
Russian strictly requires a double negative in this situation. Whenever you use a negative word starting with ни-, the main verb of the sentence must also be negated with не. Literally, the sentence says 'we do not dream about nothing'.
Why does the word for hope change to надежды?
It is in the genitive case. The word нет (meaning 'there is no' or 'we do not have' in this context) always forces the noun that follows it into the genitive case. Since надежда (hope) is a feminine noun ending in -а, its genitive form ends in -ы, making it надежды.
Why isn't the word есть used in the phrase У нас сильная жажда?
While the standard way to say 'we have' is У нас есть..., the word есть is usually dropped when describing abstract concepts, feelings, illnesses, or physical states like thirst (жажда). You simply structure it as 'By us strong thirst'.
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