Breakdown of Мне важно знать ответ сегодня.
знать
to know
ответ
answer
сегодня
today
мне
to me
важно
important, it is important
Questions & Answers about Мне важно знать ответ сегодня.
Why does the sentence start with Мне instead of Я?
In Russian, states of being, feelings, and necessities are often expressed impersonally. The person experiencing the state is put in the dative case (Мне means to me). You have seen this exact same structure with мне нужно (I need); here it is used to mean to me it is important.
How does важно relate to this lesson's focus on нужно?
Both words use the exact same grammatical blueprint! Just like нужно expresses necessity (it is necessary), важно expresses importance (it is important). When followed by an infinitive verb like знать, they both stay in the short neuter form ending in -о, and both require the person to be in the dative case.
Is ответ the subject of the sentence here?
No, ответ is the direct object of the verb знать (to know), so it is in the accusative case. Because ответ is a masculine inanimate noun, its accusative form looks exactly identical to its nominative form. The sentence actually has no formal grammatical subject.
Could I use the perfective verb узнать here instead of the imperfective знать?
You could, but it would slightly change the meaning. The imperfective знать means to know (the ongoing state of having the information). The perfective узнать means to find out or to discover. The speaker is emphasizing that holding the knowledge today is what matters, rather than the act of discovering it.
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