Breakdown of В этом десерте около пятисот калорий.
этот
this [f: эта, n: это]
в
in / to (direction)
десерт
dessert
пятьсот
five hundred
около
approximately, about
калория
calorie
Questions & Answers about В этом десерте около пятисот калорий.
Why is the number written as пятисот instead of пятьсот?
The preposition около (about/approximately) requires the following words to be in the genitive case. When declining hundreds from 500 to 900, both halves of the word change. The first part (пять) takes its normal genitive form (пяти), and the second part (сот) is already the genitive plural of сто. Jammed together, they form пятисот.
Why is the word for calories (калорий) in the genitive plural?
In Russian, quantities ending in 5 through 9, as well as 0 (and the teens 11-19), require the noun being counted to be in the genitive plural. The base word is калория (a feminine noun ending in -ия). To make it genitive plural, the -ия changes to -ий, resulting in калорий.
Does the preposition около always require the genitive case?
Yes! Whether около is used to mean "approximately" (as it is with the number in this sentence) or to mean "near/next to" a physical place, it always forces the noun or number that follows it into the genitive case.
Why does the sentence use в этом десерте (prepositional case) instead of в этот десерт (accusative case)?
We use the prepositional case here because the sentence describes a static location—it is stating where the calories currently are. If you were talking about motion or a change of state (for example, adding calories into the dessert), you would use the accusative case (в этот десерт).
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