Natural choice and register
Modern Russian often prefers a genitive noun where English prefers a prenominal possessive.
- Possessive adjectives can sound intimate, colloquial, traditional, literary, or lexicalised depending on source and context.
| Meaning | Often natural | Alternative/nuance |
|---|---|---|
| mother's voice | ма́мин го́лос | го́лос ма́мы also possible |
| Anna's report | докла́д А́нны | А́ннин докла́д more personal/contextual |
| the director's decision | реше́ние дире́ктора | *дире́кторово not neutral modern |
| fox fur | ли́сий мех | species/material relation |
| bear service | медве́жья услу́га | lexicalised figurative expression |
Read the model
3.18 · Natural choice and register · table 1
mother's voice · ма́мин го́лос · го́лос ма́мы also possibleAnna's report · докла́д А́нны · А́ннин докла́д more personal/contextualMini-check
Choose neutral: the professor's book. Why is ли́сий мех not necessarily one fox's possession?
Apply this next
- Say the Russian examples aloud, cover the model, and retrieve the pattern once before continuing.