Questions & Answers about От брата давно нет вестей.
Why is it вестей instead of the more common word for news, новостей?
Вестей is the genitive plural of весть, a slightly older word for a message or piece of news. While you normally use новости for the daily news, the phrase нет вестей (no word / no news) is a common set expression when talking about hearing from a person.
Why use давно here instead of долго, since the English translation says 'for a long time'?
Давно is used for a state that started in the past and continues into the present, much like the English present perfect tense. Долго focuses on the pure duration of an active event. Since the lack of news is a continuing state leading up to now, давно is required.
Why isn't there a word for 'my' before брата?
In Russian, possessive pronouns like моего (my) are frequently dropped when the context makes it obvious. When talking about family members or body parts, it is automatically assumed you mean your own unless you specify otherwise.
Why are both брата and вестей in the genitive case?
They take the genitive case for two entirely different reasons. Брата is genitive because it follows the preposition от (from). Вестей is genitive because it is used with нет (there is no), which requires the genitive case to show the absence of something.
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