Breakdown of Никто не хочет думать о старости.
не
not
думать
to think
хотеть
to want
о
about (о, об, обо)
никто
nobody
старость
old age
Questions & Answers about Никто не хочет думать о старости.
Why are there two negative words (Никто and не) in this sentence?
In Russian, double negatives are mandatory. When you use a negative pronoun like никто (nobody) or ничего (nothing), you must also put не before the verb. Literally, you are saying 'Nobody doesn't want'.
Why does the word for old age end in '-и' (старости)?
The preposition о (about) requires the Prepositional case. The dictionary form of the word is старость (old age), which is a feminine noun ending in a soft sign (-ь). Feminine nouns in this specific group (3rd declension) change their ending to -и in the Prepositional case, rather than the more common -е.
How does старость fit with the Dative case age expressions we're learning?
In this lesson, you are learning to express exact age using the Dative case (for example, Ему было 60 лет - He was 60 years old). However, старость is just a standard noun meaning 'old age'. It doesn't trigger the Dative case by itself. Here it takes the Prepositional case simply because of the preposition о.
Why is думать (to think) left in its infinitive form?
Just like in English, when you pair a conjugated verb of desire, ability, or intent (like хочет - wants) with another action, the second verb remains in its infinitive (dictionary) form. Together they make хочет думать (wants to think).
Learn Никто не хочет думать о старости and more in Russian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free