LinguaThe same prepositions doing two jobs
В and на have not changed since the last unit, but the noun after them has two possible endings. With -е the phrase answers Где? – the place somebody is. With the object ending it answers Куда? – the place somebody is heading for.
The direction ending is the one this unit has already taught you: feminine -у / -ю, masculine and neuter untouched. There is nothing new to memorise here, only a second job for a form you can already build.
| Where? – Где? | Where to? – Куда? | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| в школе | в школу | school |
| на работе | на работу | work |
| в театре | в театр | the theatre |
| на почте | на почту | the post office |
| в комнате | в комнату | the room |
Verbs that move and verbs that stay
A verb of movement makes the question Куда? almost automatic. Идти is going on foot at this moment, ехать is going by some kind of transport, ходить is going there regularly. A verb that does not move keeps the old -е.
| Verb | Sentence | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| идти | Я иду в магазин | going on foot right now |
| ехать | Мы едем в город | travelling by some transport |
| ходить | Он ходит на работу | going there again and again |
| работать | Я работаю в магазине | staying in one place |
Home is two different words
A few adverbs keep the same split without any preposition at all. Дома answers Где? and домой answers Куда?; the same pair runs through здесь / сюда and там / туда.
| At the place – Где? | Towards the place – Куда? | Which place |
|---|---|---|
| дома | домой | the home you live in |
| здесь | сюда | the place next to the speaker |
| там | туда | the place away from the speaker |
Сейчас я иду в школу, а мой брат уже в школе.Right now I am walking to school, and my brother is already at school.
Куда ты едешь? – Я еду домой.Where are you going? – I am going home.
Words in this lesson
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| куда | where to | Куда ты идёшь сейчас? Where are you walking to now? |
| идти | to go on foot | Мы идём в магазин. We are walking to the shop. |
| ехать | to go by transport | Мы едем в аэропорт. We are going to the airport. |
| ходить | to go regularly on foot | Дети ходят в школу. The children go to school. |
| ездить | to travel regularly | Отец часто ездит в город. Father often travels to the city. |
| домой | homewards | Я иду домой. I am walking home. |
| туда | to that place | Мы идём туда вместе. We are going there together. |
| сюда | to this place | Автобус едет сюда. The bus is coming this way. |
| аэропорт | airport | Наш аэропорт очень большой. Our airport is very big. |
| деревня | village | В деревне тихо и красиво. It is quiet and beautiful in the village. |
Exercises
This lesson has 10 exercises in the app:
- multiple choice: 3
- match the pairs: 1
- fill the gap: 2
- build the sentence: 1
- translate the sentence: 2
- listen and type: 1
Try the first one
Which sentence says that a person is on the way to school and not there yet?
The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.