Russian · TORFL Band 1 (A1) · Chapter 35
Много риса, мало солиA lot of rice, a little salt
The last chapter of the book — about food and quantity. You already know the genitive case from chapters 22, 26 and especially chapter 32 («нет стола»). Now we apply it again: after the quantity words «много» (much/many), «мало» (little/few), «немного» (a little), the noun stands in the GENITIVE case. Uncountable — genitive singular: много риса, мало сахара, немного соли. Countable in the plural — genitive plural: много фруктов. The logic is the same as with «нет»: both «нет» and «много» require the genitive. Mike, the Englishman, says «много рис» ✗ because in English «a lot of rice» the word «rice» does not change. But in Russian the genitive is needed: «много риса» ✓. Ivan will link it to «нет стола» from chapter 32. Sound corner: «риса» = «RÍ-sa», «соли» = «SÓ-li» (soft «л»).
Dialogue
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В магазине— At the shop
- ivan
- mike
- ivan
- mike
- ivan
- mike
Dialogue
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Готовим ужин— Cooking dinner
- anya
- ivan
- anya
- ivan
- anya
- ivan
Vocabulary
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- рис
nounrice
- суп
nounsoup
- мясо
nounmeat
- рыба
nounfish
- сахар
nounsugar
- соль
nounsalt
- фрукты
nounfruit (pl.)
- много
adverba lot, much, many
- мало
adverblittle, few
- немного
adverba little, a bit
Grammar
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Quantity + genitive: «много риса»
Explanation
The quantity words «много», «мало», «немного» behave just like «нет» from chapter 32: after them the noun stands in the GENITIVE case. The rule is simple, and you already know it. Uncountable food (you can’t count it) goes into the genitive singular. Masculine adds «-а»: рис → много риса, сахар → мало сахара, суп → немного супа. Neuter «-о» changes to «-а»: мясо → много мяса. Feminine «-а» changes to «-ы»: рыба → много рыбы; and soft feminine in «-ь» to «-и»: соль → мало соли. A countable noun in the plural goes into the genitive plural: фрукты → много фруктов. Compare: «нет соли» (нет + genitive) and «мало соли» (мало + genitive) — the very same case. Mike’s mistake: in English «a lot of rice» the word «rice» does not change, so he says «много рис» ✗. But in Russian: «много риса» ✓.
Examples
- На кухне много риса.There is a lot of rice in the kitchen.
- В супе мало соли.There is little salt in the soup.
- Я купил немного мяса и рыбы.I bought a little meat and fish.
- На столе много фруктов.There is a lot of fruit on the table.
Cyrillic
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Твёрдое «ы» и мягкое «и»— The hard "ы" and the soft "и"
The book’s last reading rule — two similar but different vowels: «ы» and «и». «И» is soft, front: the tongue is forward, the sound is bright, like the English «ee» in «see». «Ы» is hard, back: the tongue is pulled back, the sound is dull, «thick» — there is no such sound in English. Compare: «рис» = «ris» (soft «и») and «рыба» = «RÝ-ba» (hard «ы»). The plural often ends in «ы»: «фрукты» = «FRÚK-ty», «столы», «книги»… wait: after «г, к, х» and after «ж, ш» one writes «и», but the sound can still be hard. Don’t worry — start with the clear pair «рис / рыба» and feel the difference: «и» forward, «ы» back. This rule ties together everything you have learned: stress, "akanye", devoicing, the hushing letters. Read the words aloud — and congratulations on the last chapter!
Read the words aloud:
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