8. What Russians need cases for
You may wonder why cases are so important in the Russian language. That is because the case of a noun shows what role the noun plays in a sentence regardless of the word order.
Nominative (именительный падеж)
The initial form. It answers the questions “who?” or “what?”.
EXAMPLES:
Часы пробили пять. – The clock struck five.
Пушкин – великий русский поэт. – Pushkin is a great Russian poet.
Genitive (родительный падеж)
It is used to show the idea of belonging, absence or referring to something or somebody.
EXAMPLES:
У учителя нет карандаша. – The teacher has no pencil.
Это книга моего дедушки. – This is my grandfather’s book.
Dative (дательный падеж)
It shows that something is given or addressed to the person or the object.
EXAMPLES:
Это письмо известному актеру. – This is a letter to a famous actor.
Помоги своей сестре. – Help your sister.
Accusative (винительный падеж)
It shows the object of an action.
EXAMPLES:
Я люблю цветы. – I love flowers.
Вася чинит машину. – Vasya is fixing the car.
Instrumental (творительный падеж)
It shows the instrument by which an action is performed.
EXAMPLES:
Письмо написано карандашом. – The letter is written in pencil.
Малыш ест руками. – The baby is eating with its hands.
Prepositional (предложный падеж)
It shows the person or object talked/thought about or a place.
This case is always used with a preposition.
EXAMPLES:
Мы думаем о море. – We are thinking of the sea.
Мы плаваем в море. – We are swimming in the sea.
Они говорили о деньгах. – They talked about money.