Breakdown of Мы покупаем четыре нежные лилии и две белые розы.
и
and
мы
we
белый
white
покупать
to buy
четыре
four
две
two (f)
роза
rose
нежный
delicate
лилия
lily
Questions & Answers about Мы покупаем четыре нежные лилии и две белые розы.
Why do the adjectives нежные and белые take nominative plural endings?
This highlights the core rule for adjectives modifying feminine nouns after the numbers 2, 3, and 4. While the feminine noun takes the genitive singular form (лилии, розы), the adjective takes the nominative plural form (нежные, белые). If the nouns were masculine or neuter, the adjectives would take the genitive plural instead.
Are the phrases четыре нежные лилии and две белые розы in the nominative or accusative case here?
They are in the accusative case because they are the direct objects of the verb покупаем (we are buying). However, because lilies and roses are inanimate nouns, the accusative forms for the numbers 2, 3, and 4 match their nominative forms perfectly. This inanimate rule applies to the entire number phrase.
Why is the number two written as две instead of два?
The number 2 has two different gendered forms. You use два for masculine and neuter nouns, but две for feminine nouns like роза. The numbers 3 and 4 do not change based on gender, which is why it is simply четыре for the lilies.
Why does the genitive singular of the word for lily end in -ии (лилии)?
The dictionary form of the word is лилия. Feminine nouns that end in -ия belong to a special declension group. In the genitive, dative, and prepositional cases, their singular ending changes to -ии. This is why you see лилии instead of a standard feminine genitive ending.
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