Question 1

How do наелись and напились get the meaning of eating and drinking one's fill?

Accepted Answer

This is the core of the satiation pattern. By wrapping a base verb like есть (to eat) or пить (to drink) in the prefix на- and the reflexive postfix -ся or -сь, you create a new perfective verb meaning to do an action until you are completely full or satisfied.

Question 2

Why are вкусной пиццы and холодного кваса in the genitive case instead of the accusative?

Accepted Answer

Usually, you eat or drink a direct object in the accusative case. However, the -сь ending makes these verbs technically reflexive, and true reflexive verbs cannot take a direct object in the accusative. Instead, verbs with the на-...-ся satiation pattern require the genitive case for the thing you consume. Think of it as having your fill "of" something.

Question 3

Why do these verbs end in -сь instead of the standard reflexive -ся?

Accepted Answer

The reflexive particle has two forms. You use -ся after consonants, but it shortens to -сь after vowels. Since the past tense plural forms ели and пили both end in the vowel и, the particle becomes -сь to make pronunciation smoother.

Question 4

Are наелись and напились perfective or imperfective?

Accepted Answer

They are perfective, focusing on the completed result of finally being full. The prefix на- changes the imperfective base verbs into perfective ones. If you need the imperfective to emphasize the process of getting full, you would use the derived forms наедались and напивались, but the perfective forms are used much more often.

Мы наелись вкусной пиццы и напились холодного кваса.

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