Breakdown of Брат одолжил мне деньги на одну неделю.
брат
brother
я
I
деньги
money
один
one
неделя
week
на
for (a period of time)
одолжить
to lend
Questions & Answers about Брат одолжил мне деньги на одну неделю.
Why do we use на here instead of just saying одну неделю?
The preposition на is used here to show intended duration. It tells us how long the result of the action is supposed to last (you get to keep the money for one week). If you left out на and just used the standard Accusative time expression одну неделю, it would mean the actual process of him handing the money over took an entire week!
Why are одну and неделю in the Accusative case here?
When the preposition на is used for intended duration, it requires the Accusative case. Because неделя is a feminine noun, it changes to неделю. The number one (одна) must match the noun in gender and case, so it changes to the feminine Accusative form одну.
Does одолжил mean borrowed or lent? I always mix up the Russian verbs for this.
In standard Russian, одолжить specifically means to lend (giving something to someone). To say borrow, you would use the verb занять. While you might occasionally hear native speakers use одолжить incorrectly to mean borrow in casual slang, you should stick to using it strictly for lending.
Why is мне used instead of меня?
Мне is the Dative case of я (I). Verbs of giving, telling, or lending require the Dative case for the person on the receiving end. The brother lent the money to me, making me the indirect object.
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