Breakdown of Эти ботинки мне малы.
маленький
small
этот
this [f: эта, n: это]
мне
to me
ботинки
boots, shoes
Questions & Answers about Эти ботинки мне малы.
Why does the sentence use the short adjective малы instead of the regular long form маленькие?
In Russian, short-form adjectives are often used to show that something is too much of a certain quality for a specific situation. While маленькие ботинки just means small boots in general, малы means they are specifically too small to fit.
Why is the pronoun мне in the dative case here?
The dative case shows who is experiencing or affected by the situation. By pairing the dative мне (to/for me) with the short adjective малы (too small), you express that the boots are too small specifically for you.
Is ботинки a plural-only noun like деньги or очки from our current lesson?
Not strictly. Unlike true plural-only nouns, this word has a singular form: ботинок (one boot). However, because we wear footwear in pairs, you will usually treat it just like a plural-only noun in everyday speech, declining it through the plural cases.
Where is the verb in this sentence?
Russian routinely drops the present tense of the verb to be. The subject эти ботинки (these boots) connected directly to the short adjective малы acts as a complete sentence.