Breakdown of Днём я устаю, зеваю и хочу спать.
и
and
я
I
хотеть
to want
днём
in the afternoon / during the day
спать
to sleep
уставать
to get tired
зевать
to yawn
Questions & Answers about Днём я устаю, зеваю и хочу спать.
Why is the verb for getting tired устаю instead of "уставаю"?
The infinitive is уставать. It belongs to a specific group of verbs ending in -ставать (along with -давать and -знавать) that drop the -ва- suffix when conjugated in the present tense. Therefore, it becomes я устаю.
If уставать drops the -ва-, why doesn't зевать (to yawn) drop it too?
The suffix-dropping rule only applies to the specific endings -давать, -знавать, and -ставать. Because зевать just ends in a standard -вать (with a root ending in "е"), it conjugates completely regularly: я зеваю, ты зеваешь.
Why is the word for day or afternoon written as днём here?
Днём is the instrumental case of день (day). Russian uses the instrumental case for parts of the day and seasons to indicate when an action happens. Just as утром means "in the morning", днём means "during the day" or "in the afternoon".
Is хочу (I want) a regular verb?
No, хотеть (to want) is a very common irregular verb. It is a great one to review because it mixes conjugation patterns! In the singular it uses an "e" pattern (я хочу, ты хочешь), but in the plural it switches to an "и" pattern (мы хотим).
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