The Russian Genitive Case: Endings & Examples
The genitive is the workhorse of Russian: it covers possession, "of" something, absence ("there is no..."), quantities and a long list of prepositions. After the nominative and accusative, it is the case you will meet most.
What the genitive case does
The genitive answers кого? / чего? - "of whom?" / "of what?" Its core meaning is possession and the English "of": «книга студента» ("the student's book" / "the book of the student"), «центр города» ("the center of the city").
It also marks absence and negation of existence: «у меня нет времени» ("I have no time") and «здесь нет воды» ("there is no water here") both use the genitive after нет. And it shows quantity: «стакан воды» ("a glass of water"), «много книг» ("many books").
When to use it: prepositions and triggers
Many common prepositions always take the genitive: без (without), у (at / by / "to have"), до (until / up to), от (from), из (out of), с in the sense of "off / from", для (for), около (near), после (after) and вокруг (around).
Beyond prepositions, the genitive follows нет / не было / не будет (absence), numbers and quantity words (два, пять, много, мало, несколько), and dates ("the 5th of May"). When in doubt about "of", absence or amount, the genitive is usually the answer.
Предлоги, требующие падеж: Родительный
без, у, до, от, из, с (со), для, около, после, вокруг
Genitive singular endings
Masculine and neuter nouns take -а (hard) or -я (soft); feminine nouns take -ы (hard) or -и (soft). Remember the spelling rule: after к, г, х, ж, ч, ш, щ you must write -и, so книга becomes книги, not книгы.
| Род | Твёрдая основа | Мягкая основа | Примечание / пример |
|---|---|---|---|
| Мужской | -а | -я | стола, коня |
| Женский | -ы | -и | after к г х ж ч ш щ use -и (книги) |
| Средний | -а | -я | окна, моря |
Примеры предложений
Это книга студента.
Eto kniga studenta.
This is the student's book.
У меня нет времени.
U menya net vremeni.
I have no time.
Стакан воды, пожалуйста.
Stakan vody, pozhaluysta.
A glass of water, please.
Я из России.
Ya iz Rossii.
I am from Russia.
Это подарок для мамы.
Eto podarok dlya mamy.
This is a present for mom.
Около дома есть парк.
Okolo doma yest park.
There is a park near the house.
После работы я отдыхаю.
Posle raboty ya otdykhayu.
After work I relax.
У него нет машины.
U nego net mashiny.
He has no car.
Практика: какой это падеж?
Практика: какой это падеж?
У меня нет времени.
Why is «времени» in this case?
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FAQ
When do you use the genitive case in Russian?
What are the genitive endings in Russian?
Why does «нет» take the genitive?
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Make the genitive automatic
Possession, "of", absence, quantity - the genitive is everywhere. Daily Cyrillic drills it in real sentences with audio and spaced repetition.
