The genitive is the most widely-used case in Russian, as nouns in the genitive case serve multiple functions. We use the genitive case for possessors, absent nouns, quantities, the objects of a large number of prepositions, and more.
In this post, we'll introduce you to the Russian genitive case. We’ll start with some charts that will show you how to form nouns, adjectives, and pronouns in this case, then we’ll give you a brief overview of the most important uses of this case. Along the way, we’ll direct you towards some resources where you can learn more. Ready to have a look? Let’s do it!
How to form the genitive case in Russian?
To form the genitive case in Russian, you'll usually replace the ending that a noun or adjective has in the nominative case with a special genitive ending. However, there are some words, like pronouns, that have special forms just for the genitive. Let's look!
Genitive singular nouns
The chart below illustrates the general rules for forming genitive singular nouns:
| Gender | Nominative singular ending | Genitive singular ending | Examples | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Masculine | hard consonant | consonant + -а transcribed a | друг Transcription: drook | друга Transcription: DROOga | friend |
-й | -я Transcription: ya | музей Transcription: mooZYEY | музея Transcription: mooZYEya | museum | |
-ь | учитель Transcription: ooCHEEtil | учителя Transcription: ooCHEEtilya | teacher | ||
Feminine | -а | -ы Transcription: y | мама Transcription: MAma | мамы Transcription: MAmy | mom |
-я | -и Transcription: i | тётя Transcription: TYOtya | тёти Transcription: TYOti | aunt | |
-ь | ночь Transcription: noch | ночи Transcription: NOchi | night | ||
Neuter | -о | -а Transcription: a | окно Transcription: akNO | окна Transcription: akNA | window |
-е | -я Transcription: ya | море Transcription: MOrye | моря Transcription: MOrya | sea | |
Singular masculine genitive nouns are also sometimes formed using the endings -у / -ю, instead. These endings are used only in spoken Russian and only in some specific situations, like talking about the amount of something or in certain idiomatic phrases. To read more about these endings, check out our instructions for when and how to use the -у / -ю genitive endings in Russian at the downloads section at the bottom of this page.
Genitive plural nouns
The chart below illustrates how to put plural nouns into the genitive case. Note that sometimes an ending is dropped rather than added!
| Gender | Nominative singular ending | Genitive singular ending | Examples | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Masculine | hard consonant | consonant + -ов transcribed of | стол Transcription: stal | столов Transcription: staLOF | table(s) |
-й | -ев Transcription: ev | музей Transcription: mooZYEY | музеев Transcription: mooZYEyef | museum(s) | |
-ь | -ей Transcription: yey | учитель Transcription: ooCHEEtil | учителей Transcription: oochitiLYEY | teacher(s) | |
Feminine | -а | — | мама Transcription: MAma | мам Transcription: mam | mom(s) |
-я | -ь | тётя Transcription: TYOtya | тёть Transcription: tyot | aunt(s) | |
-ь | -ей Transcription: yey | ночь Transcription: noch | ночей Transcription: naCHYEY | night(s) | |
Neuter | -о | — | лицо Transcription: lyiTSO | лиц Transcription: lyic | face(s) |
-е | -ей Transcription: yey | море Transcription: MOrye | морей Transcription: maRYEY | sea(s) | |
Genitive adjectives
In Russian, we use a genitive adjective to describe a genitive noun. Adjectives in Russian agree in gender, number, and case with the nouns or pronouns they describe.
The chart below summarizes the adjective endings in Russian. Notice that they’re not the same as the noun endings!
| Gender | Genitive adjective endings | Genitive noun endings |
|---|---|---|
Masculine |
|
|
Feminine |
|
|
Neuter |
|
|
Plural |
| Masculine:
|
Feminine, Neuter:
|
Genitive personal pronouns
Now it’s time to talk about what happens to the pronouns in the genitive case. Russian personal pronouns change by case. In the genitive case, they have the following forms:
| Nominative personal pronouns | Genitive personal pronouns |
|---|---|
я Transcription: ya Translation: I | меня Transcription: miNY |
ты Transcription: ty Translation: you (sg. informal) | тебя Transcription: tiBYA |
он Transcription: on Translation: he, it (m.) | (н)его Transcription: (n)iVO |
она Transcription: aNA Translation: she, it (f.) | (н)её Transcription: (n)iYO |
мы Transcription: my Translation: we | нас Transcription: nas |
вы Transcription: vy Translation: you (pl. or formal) | вас Transcription: vas |
они Transcription: aNEE Translation: they | (н)их Transcription: (n)eekh |
When to use the genitive case in Russian?
There are several uses of the genitive case in Russian. We mostly use this case…
for possessors
for something that is absent
after a lot of quantity words
after a wide range of prepositions
after comparative adjectives
for the objects of some verbs
to express the “partitive” (see below!)
Let’s have a closer look at each of these uses!
Genitive case of possession
In Russian, the owner or possessor of something else is always genitive. This means that, in Russian, we use genitive case for the possessor in possessive noun phrases (e.g. “John’s book”) and for the possessor in “have” sentences (e.g. “John has a book.”)
In Russian, as in English, a “possessor” can be a noun that literally owns something, but “having” and “possessing” can also be more abstract. We also use a possessive phrase when there are other relationships between nouns, for example:
- Part and whole:крыша сараяTranscription: KRYsha saRAyaTranslation: the roof of the barn
- A thing and its qualities:глубина моряTranscription: gloobiNA MOryaTranslation: the depth of the sea
- A container and its contents:бутылка водыTranscription: booTYLka vaDYTranslation: a bottle of water
- An action and its object:открытие галереиTranscription: atKRYtiye galiRYEiTranslation: the opening of the gallery
- A thing and its namesake:улица ПушкинаTranscription: OOlitsa POOSHkinaTranslation: Pushkin Street
- A person who does a job and the person the job is done for:юрист мужаTranscription: yuREEST MOOzhaTranslation: husband's lawyer
- A place with a function and person who uses it:школа танцевTranscription: SHKOla TANtsefTranslation: dancing school
Want to see more examples and discussion of this use of the genitive? Check out our article on the genitive case of possession in Russian!
Genitive case of absence
We also frequently use the genitive case to mark a noun that is absent.
We mostly use the genitive case of absence with the negative versions of the verb быть transcribed bytmeaning to be / to have:
- нетTranscription: nyetTranslation: isn't / do not have
- не былоTranscription: NYE bylaTranslation: wasn't / didn't have
- не будетTranscription: nye BOOditTranslation: won't be / have
You’ll use the genitive after these expressions if you are saying that:
Something doesn’t exist
negative wordgenitive caseРаньше в этом городе не было хороших ресторанов.Transcription: RANshe v Etam GOradye NEbyla khaROshikh ristaRAnaf.Translation: There were not good restaurants in this city before.Someone doesn’t have something
negative wordgenitive caseУ меня нет большого дома , новой машины и современных гаджетов.Transcription: oo miNYA nyet balSHOva DOma, NOvay maSHYny ee savriMYEnykh GAdzhytaf.Translation: I do not have a big house, new car, or modern gadgets.Literally: A big house, new car, or modern gadgets are not very near me.
There are also a few other negated verbs that express similar meanings and also take genitive objects.
Genitive case of quantity
In Russian, we use the genitive after quantity words, for example:
We also often use the genitive case after cardinal numbers as well, as below:
The genitive case after prepositions
In Russian, there are many prepositions which trigger the genitive case. This means that when you use these prepositions, their object will be in the genitive. Here are some examples in the context:
To learn more, have a look at our article on genitive prepositions in Russian, or download the list of genitive prepositions at the bottom of this page!
Expressing times and dates
Because the genitive is associated with quantity, possession, and prepositions, we often use it to express times and dates. For example:
To get a full picture of when you should use this case to express the time or the date check out our posts on how to say the date in Russian and how to give the time of day in Russian.
After the comparative form of an adjective
When we compare two objects, use the genitive case for the noun that comes after the comparative form of the adjective.
Genitive case after specific verbs
Some Russian verbs, like добиваться transcribed dabiVATsyameaning to achieve, to succeed or бояться transcribed baYATsyameaning to be afraid of require their object to be in the genitive case:
You can download a list of common Russian verbs that take a genitive object from the bottom of this page!
Partitive genitive
In Russian, the “partitive” genitive is applied to the direct object of a verb that usually takes the accusative case as a way to imply that the action applied to only “some” or “part” of the direct object. You’ll most often hear this in spoken language when someone is expressing that they want just some of something, not the whole thing. You still should use the accusative if you refer to “the whole” amount and not just a part of it. For example:
| Partitive Genitive ("some" or "part" of the direct object) | Accusative (a “whole” direct object) |
|---|---|
Я хочу конфет. Transcription: ya khaCHOO kanFYET. Translation: I want some candy. | Я хочу конфету. Transcription: ya khaCHOO kanFYEtoo. Translation: I want a candy. |
Дедушка собрал грибов в лесу. Transcription: DYEdooshka sabRAL griBOF v liSOO. Translation: Grandpa collected some mushrooms in the forest. | Эти грибы собрал дедушка. Transcription: Eti griBY sabRAL DYEdooshka. Translation: Grandpa collected the mushrooms. |
Она выпила чая/чаю и побежала на работу. Transcription: aNA VYpila CHAya/CHAyu i pabiZHAla na raBOtoo. Translation: She had some tea and ran to work. | Она выпила чай и побежала на работу. Transcription: aNA VYpila chay i pabiZHAla na raBOtoo. Translation: She had (a cup of) tea and ran to work. |
Дайте мне соли, пожалуйста! Transcription: DAYti mnye SOli, paZHAlasta! Translation: Give me some salt, please! | Дайте мне соль, пожалуйста! Transcription: DAYti mnye sol, paZHAlasta! Translation: Give me the salt, please! |
Summary
In this post, we covered the genitive case in Russian. We saw the following:
These are the endings for the genitive case of nouns and adjectives:
Gender Genitive
adjective endingsGenitive
noun endingsMasculine
-ого transcribed ova
-его transcribed yeva
-a transcribed a
-я transcribed ya
Feminine
-ой transcribed oy
-ей transcribed yey
-ы transcribed y
-и transcribed i
Neuter
-ого transcribed ova
-его transcribed yeva
-a transcribed a
-я transcribed ya
Plural
-ых transcribed ykh
-их transcribed ikh
Masculine:
-ов transcribed ov
-ев transcribed ev
-ей transcribed yey
Feminine, Neuter:
-∅ (drop the vowel)
-ей transcribed yey
The genitive case has many uses in Russian. We use it…
for possessor nouns
for nouns that are not present/possessed
after expressions of quantity
after a large number of prepositions
in dates and times
after comparative adjectives
for the objects of some verbs
to express that an action applies to only “part” of the direct object (the “partitive”)
And now you’re done! If you’re ready to study, review the Russian genitive case resources linked below or try out our Russian genitive case exercises to practice applying what you have learned!
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