Breakdown of У неё нет ни времени, ни желания присесть.
она
she / it (for a feminine noun)
у
at, by
время
time
нет
there is no / is not present
Questions & Answers about У неё нет ни времени, ни желания присесть.
How does the prefix при- change the meaning of сесть here?
The prefix при- often adds an attenuative meaning, indicating that an action is done lightly, slightly, or for a short time. While сесть simply means to sit down, присесть means to sit down for a moment or to take a brief rest.
Is there a cultural reason Russians often use присесть instead of сесть?
Yes! While its literal meaning is to sit for a short time, Russians often use присесть (and its imperfective partner присаживаться) as a highly polite way to offer someone a seat. The standard verb сесть can sound a bit blunt as a command and also carries a slang meaning of going to prison, so hosts often prefer the softer присесть.
Why do we need the word нет if we already have ни... ни (neither... nor)?
Russian requires double negation. Unlike English, where neither... nor is negative enough on its own, Russian builds on the negative foundation of нет. You must literally phrase it as She does not have neither time nor desire.
Why is the word for time spelled времени here instead of время?
The word нет requires the genitive case for the things that are absent. Время is an irregular neuter noun ending in -мя. In the genitive case, this ending expands to -мени, making it времени.