Breakdown of Ни одна ложа не свободна.
не
not
свободный
free, available
ни один
not a single / not one
ложа
box (theater seating)
Questions & Answers about Ни одна ложа не свободна.
Why do we need the negative particle не if we already have Ни одна (not a single)?
Russian requires double negation. When you use a negative pronoun or phrase starting with ни (like ни один), you must also negate the verb with не. Since there is no overt verb here (the present tense 'is' is omitted), the не directly precedes the short adjective свободна.
What does the word ложа mean in this context? Is it related to a lodge?
While ложа can mean a Masonic lodge, in everyday Russian it usually refers to a private box in a theater or auditorium. So this sentence is saying that all the theater boxes are sold out or occupied.
Why is свободна used in its short form here rather than the long form свободная?
In Russian, short adjectives are often used when the adjective is the main predicate of the sentence (the core describing what the subject 'is'). Words like свободен (free or available) and занят (busy or occupied) are almost always used in their short forms to describe this kind of temporary state.
What case is Ни одна in, and why?
It is in the nominative case, feminine singular. The phrase Ни одна ложа is the subject of the sentence. The pronoun ни один declines exactly like the number один, so it changes to одна to match the feminine noun ложа.