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< Language Generator 3—Кому как (How is it to Whom)

Language Generator 3—Кому как (How is it to Whom)

When Russians talk about how their environment affects them, they use the dative case. The dative case answers the question to whom. For example, instead of saying “I am cold.” they would say “To me it is cold.” This is because to a Russian it seems illogical to make oneself the subject of a sentence about one's environment. In fact, they would understand “I am cold.” to mean “I am cold to the touch.”

Practice using the universal language generator below to make sentences which use the dative case to say how something is to someone.

The sentences built using this generator can be either questions or statements depending on the intonation. For example, this a is question followed by an answer:

Вам холодно?
Мне не холодно.

Note that the modifier не negates the word which comes right after it. If you were to move it in front of a different word, you would produce a different meaning. For example:

Dative case expressions like these are often the best way to translate the word for. Use one when “for you” means “from your point of view”. “Is it too fast for you?” should be translated “Вам сли́шком бы́стро?” Beginners often say “Для Вас слишком быстро?” but that would mean “Was it for you (as a favor) that they made it too fast?”