Question 1

Why do we use есть here? I thought the verb 'to be' is usually skipped in the present tense.

Accepted Answer

You're right that Russian normally skips 'is' or 'are' in descriptive sentences like 'The pharmacy is big' (Аптека большая). However, when you want to express that something actually exists or is available in a location, you must use есть. In this sentence, it translates best as 'are available' or 'are in stock'.

Question 2

Doesn't есть also mean 'to eat'? How do I know which meaning applies here?

Accepted Answer

Yes, есть is also the infinitive verb meaning 'to eat'. You can tell them apart by context and grammar. Here, it is the present tense form of 'to be' used for availability. If it meant 'eating', the verb would be conjugated to match the subject, such as они едят (they eat). The pattern 'Subject + есть + Location' is the standard way to say something is available.

Question 3

Why is the word for 'these' Эти instead of Это?

Accepted Answer

Это is often used as a standalone word meaning 'this is' or 'these are', as in Это таблетки (These are pills). But when 'these' acts as a pointer directly describing a noun right next to it, it must match that noun in gender and number. Because таблетки (pills) is plural, we must use the plural form эти.

Question 4

Why does the word for pharmacy end in '-е' here (аптеке)?

Accepted Answer

The dictionary form of the word is аптека. Because we are stating where something is located ('at the pharmacy'), we use the preposition в (in/at) followed by the Prepositional case. For most feminine nouns ending in -а, the Prepositional case changes the final letter to -е, resulting in в аптеке.

Эти таблетки есть в аптеке.

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