Question 1

The lesson is about всё-таки and всё же. Why does this sentence use всё равно, and is it related?

Accepted Answer

Всё равно literally means "all equal", and with a dative pronoun like мне it translates to "I don't care" or "it's all the same to me". However, it can also be used as a concessive particle meaning "anyway" or "all the same" (e.g., "he did it anyway"). It is often taught alongside всё-таки and всё же so you can contrast them: всё-таки means "nevertheless" or "still", but it can never be used to say "I don't care".

Question 2

Why is мне in the dative case here instead of the nominative я?

Accepted Answer

The phrase всё равно forms an impersonal construction, similar to state-of-being words like холодно (cold) or надо (necessary). In Russian, you use the dative case to indicate the person who is experiencing that state. Literally, the sentence is saying "To me, everything is equal."

Question 3

Is the comma before что strictly necessary?

Accepted Answer

Yes. In Russian, a subordinate clause (a dependent part of the sentence with its own subject and verb, like он думает) must always be separated from the main clause by a comma. While English seamlessly connects them without punctuation ("I don't care what he thinks"), Russian strictly requires the comma before что.

Question 4

Is saying мне всё равно considered rude or aggressive?

Accepted Answer

It can sound dismissive or blunt, very similar to "I don't care" in English. While perfectly normal in casual speech, if you want to sound softer or more polite in a professional setting, you might prefer это не имеет значения (it doesn't matter) or мне не важно (it's not important to me).

Мне всё равно, что он думает.

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