Breakdown of В детстве я боялся темноты и высоты.
и
and
я
I
в
on / during (a time period)
бояться
to be afraid
Questions & Answers about В детстве я боялся темноты и высоты.
Why are темноты and высоты in the Genitive case instead of the Accusative?
The verb бояться (to fear / to be afraid of) requires its object to be in the Genitive case. This is a special rule for verbs that express fear, desire, or expectation. You can think of it like being afraid of something. So, темнота (darkness) becomes темноты and высота (height) becomes высоты.
The English translation says "heights" (plural). Is высоты plural here?
No, высоты is the Genitive singular form of высота (height). While English speakers naturally say "I am afraid of heights" in the plural, Russian prefers the singular for this abstract concept. If it were plural, the Genitive would be высот, but that is rarely used when talking about the general phobia.
Why does боялся end in -ся instead of -сь?
The reflexive particle at the end of the verb changes based on the letter right before it. Because the masculine past tense ends in a consonant (-л), you must use -ся (боялся). If a female were speaking, the verb would end in a vowel (-ла), so it would take -сь (боялась).
What case is в детстве and why?