Derek Offord - Using Russian - A Guide to Contemporary Usage

392

11.2

Use of pronouns

Mы никогдa

´ нeговори´м об

We never talk about that .

э

´ том.

Я никудa

´ нeходи´л(a).

I didn’t go anywhere .

Note:

никто

´and ничто

´decline (see 9.2) and, if governed by a preposition, split into two components with the preposition between them. (See also 11.2.4.)

11.2.4

Use of нe´кого, etc.

The pronouns dealt with in 11.2.3 should not be confused with similar forms which are used in contexts where English has the expressions to have no one/nothing/no time/nowhere to or there is no one/nothing/no time/nowhere to , viz:

нe

´ чeго

to have nothing to

нe

´ кого

to have no one to

нe

´ когдa

to have no time to

нe

´ гдe

to have nowhere to (position

indicated)

нe

´ кудa

to have nowhere to (movement

indicated)

Being impersonal, these expressions are invariably used with the neuter form бы´ло, if they are in the past tense, and the third-person-singular form бу´дeт, if they are in the future. Examples:

Haм нe

´ чeгодe´лaть.

We have nothing to do/There is

nothing for us to do .

Eму

´ нe´кого бы´лолюби´ть.

He had no one to love .

Eй нe

´ когдa бу´дeтви´дeть вaс.

She will have no time to see you .

Яблоку нe

´ гдeупa´сть.

There isn’t room to swing a cat . (lit

There is nowhere for an apple to fall .)

Note:

нe

´ чeгоand нe

´ кого, which are accusative/genitive forms, also have dative, instrumental and prepositional forms. When these words are governed by a preposition they are generally split to enable the preposition to be inserted between the particle нeand the appropriate form of ктооr что, e.g.

Mнe нe

´ нa кого´полaгa´ться.

I have no one to rely on .

Eй нe

´ комудaть ли´шний

She has got no one to give the spare

билe

´ т.

ticket to .

Mнe нe

´ чeмeсть суп.

I’ve got nothing to drink my soup with .

Eму нe

´ с кeмговори´ть об

He’s got nobody to talk to about this .

э

´ том.

им нe´ о чeм бы´логовори´ть.

They had nothing to talk about .

11.2.5

Use of the particles -то, -нибу´дь, -ли´бо

Use of these particles, any of which may be added to кто, что, когдa´, гдe, кудa

´ , кaко´й, кaк, отку´дa, почeму´, to render someone, something, some time, somewhere, (to) somewhere, some, somehow, from somewhere, for 393

11

Syntax

some reason , respectively, gives the English-speaking student some difficulty. The fundamental distinction between them is that - нибу´дь

implies that there is an element of choice from several alternatives, whereas - тоimplies that something is unknown to the speaker. The less common - ли´боis a more bookish alternative to - нибу´дьand now sounds somewhat dated.

r - тоwill translate into English as some and indicates that while the speaker is sure that some event has taken place he or she does not have precise information about it, e.g. Oн скaзa´л что´-то, но я нe

рaсслы

´ шaл(a), He said something but I didn’t catch it [i.e. sth definitely was said, but the speaker does not know exactly what it was]; Кто´-то

тeбe

´ звони´л, Somebody phoned you [but the speaker does not know who].

r - нибу´дьmay be translated, depending on the context, as either some or any . It occurs with the imperative, e.g. Поговори´тe с

кe

´ м-нибудьоб э´том, Have a talk with somebody about it . It also tends to occur:

(a)

more with the future, about which there is less certainty than the

present and in which therefore any one of a number of things might

happen, e.g. Éсли кто´-нибудьпозвони´т, скaжи´тe им, что я

зaболe

´ л(a), If anyone rings, tell them I’m ill ;

(b)

in the past tense when there is a choice or range of possibilities.

Compare e.g.

Кa

´ ждоe у´тро он

Every morning he went somewhere [the

уходи

´ л кудa´-то.

speaker does not know where].

Кa

´ ждоe у´тро он уходи´л

Every morning he went somewhere [possibly

кудa

´ -нибудь.

different places on different mornings].

(c)

in combination with expressions such as вeроя´тно, probably , нaвe´рно, probably, I expect , which indicate uncertainty, e.g. Haвe´рно он ку´пит

что

´ -нибудь, I expect he’ll buy something [but what exactly is not yet known].

r - ли´бо, like - нибу´дь, may indicate choice or a range of possibilities, e.g.

Haйди

´ тe кого´-либо, кто мог бы вaм помо´чь с э´тим, Find somebody who could help you with this .

11.2.6

Use of свой

Use of this word gives much difficulty to the English-speaker, because English has only one possessive pronoun for each person. Cвой

declines like мойand agrees in gender, case and number with the noun it qualifies. It denotes possession by the person or thing which is the subject of the clause in which the possessive pronoun occurs

irrespective of whether that subject is first, second or third person and 394

11.3

Use of short adjectives

singular or plural. It might therefore translate any of the English

possessive pronouns in the following variations:

I/you/he/she/we/they have/has lost my/your/his/her/our/their money .

Я/ты/он/онa´/мы/вы/они´ потeря´л(a/и) свои´дe´ньги.

If any of the third-person possessives ( his/her/its/their ) are rendered by eго

´ /eё/ихthen those Russian pronouns indicate possession by