The central plural animacy rule
Plural gender no longer determines the accusative shape; animacy does.
- This is why genitive plural came first. The learner can now build rather than memorise: де́ти → genitive plural дете́й → accusative plural ви́жу дете́й.
| Noun class | Accusative plural equals | Example |
|---|---|---|
| inanimate | nominative plural | ви́жу столы́, кни́ги, о́кна |
| animate | genitive plural | ви́жу студе́нтов, же́нщин, дете́й |
Mini-check
1. Build the accusative plural of столы́ and студе́нты. 2. Which previous form supplies animate accusative plural?
Apply this next
- Retrieve the rule without looking, then continue to the next lesson.