When to use the genitive case with quantity words and numbers in Russian?
In Russian, you will most often use the genitive case for a noun that comes after a quantity word (e.g. “a lot of”), a measurement (e.g. “a cup of”), or a number (e.g. “three”). That means that if you want to translate phrases like “a couple of friends,” “a few cups of tea or coffee” or “several pieces of cake” into Russian, you’ll need to use a lot of !
This use of the genitive in Russian is called the genitive of quantity. In this post, we’ll go through how and when you’ll use the genitive with different kinds of quantity words, first with quantifiers (words like “a lot” or “a few”), then with measurements (e.g. “a cup” or “a kilogram”), and lastly with numbers. By the end of this post, you’ll be an expert in answering the question сколько?[SKOLka](how many/much?)!
The genitive case with quantifiers like “a lot” and “a little”
The genitive is always used in Russian with the following words indicating quantity:
Russian | English |
|---|---|
сколько SKOLka | how much / how many |
много MNOga | many, much |
немного niMNOga | some / not much / not many |
мало MAla | little / few |
немало niMAla | quite a few |
несколько NYEskalka | a few, several |
чуть-чуть chootCHOOT | a little bit |
достаточно dasTAtachna | enough |
недостаточно nidasTAtachna | not enough |
Here are some examples of how it works:
Сколько воды ты хочешь взять с собой?
SKOLka vaDY ty KHOchesh vzyat s saBOY
How much water do you want to take with you?
У нас есть немного молока, но недостаточно яиц.
oo nas yest niMNOga malaKA no nidastAtachna yaEEts
We have some milk, but not enough eggs.
В Сибири полезных ископаемых много, а людей мало.
f siBEEri paLYEZnykh iskaPAyemykh MNOga a lyuDYEY MAla
There are many natural resources in Siberia, but few people.
As you may have noticed from the examples, the words in the genitive (nouns, adjectives, pronouns, etc.) may come either before or after the words of quantity, as the word order in Russian is far less strict than in English.
Now, how do you decide if you need the genitive singular or plural? Here, you may actually follow English in most cases and use plural for count nouns (things you can count, e.g. eggs, phones, people, bags) and singular for uncountable nouns (things you cannot count — usually they do not have plural forms, e.g. milk, knowledge, traffic, etc).
Of course, it would be too easy if there weren’t a few differences. Below are a few differences between Russian and English:
Usually singular in English, but plural in Russian | |
|---|---|
деньги DENgi | money |
волосы VOlasy | hair |
часы chiSY | a watch / a clock |
советы saVYEty | advice |
новости NOvasti | news |
фрукты FROOKty | fruit |
Usually plural in English, but singular in Russian | |
|---|---|
одежда aDYEZHda | clothes |
полиция paLEEtsiya | the police |
For example:
У них достаточно денег, чтобы покупать много одежды.
oo neekh dasTAtachna DYEnik SHTOby pakooPAT MNOga aDEZHdy
They have enough money to buy a lot of clothes.
The genitive case with measurements
Since the genitive case is commonly used with quantities in Russian, it is also used with words that refer to a specific amount of something (e.g. a pound, a kilo, a piece) or to a container with something (e.g. a bottle, a spoon, a pack, a box).
Here are some examples:
PhraseНа ужин у меня сегодня тарелка сыра, батон хлеба и бокал красного вина.
na OOzhin oo miNYA siVOdnya taRYELka SYra baTON KHLYEba i baKAL KRASnava viNA
For dinner today, I am having a plate of cheese, a loaf of bread, and a glass of red wine.
Он привёз из России целую сумку сувениров и коробку книг.
on priVYOS iz raSEEi TSElooyoo SOOMkoo sooviNEEraf i kaROPkoo kneek
He brought from Russia a whole bag of souvenirs and a box of books.
Мне, пожалуйста, килограмм сахара и пачку масла.
mnye paZHAlasta kilaGRAM SAkhara i PACHkoo MASla
I’d like a kilo of sugar and a tub of butter, please.
The genitive case with numbers
The talk about the use of the genitive case with quantities would be incomplete without saying that it is also used with cardinal numerals, such as “three,” “twenty-five,” or “four hundred nineteen.” Here is the rule:
Use the genitive singular after 2, 3, 4, and all numerals ending with 2, 3, and 4.
Use the genitive plural with numbers 5-19, and all others that end with those digits.
For example:
У него есть три кота и пять собак.
oo niVO yest tree kaTA i pyat saBAK
He has three cats and five dogs.
You can find more details in our post on Russian cardinal numerals.
Conclusion
We need the genitive case of quantity in Russian:
With quantifiers, like сколько[SKOLka](how much/many), много[MNOga](much/many), мало[MAla](little/few).
With measurements, like “kilo” and words meaning “a container” of/with something.
With numbers.
So now you know exactly why there are six examples of the genitive case in the phrase “a couple of friends, a few cups of tea or coffee, and several pieces of cake”:
пара друзей, две чашки чая или кофе, и несколько кусочков торта
PAra drooZYEY dvye CHASHki CHAya EEli KOfye i NYEskalka kooSOCHkaf TORta
If you’re ready to practice, try downloading the genitive of quantity activity sheet below! Happy learning!
