QCAA Russian (SEE) flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Russian six cases

Nominative (subject), genitive (possession, absence, after у/от/до), dative (recipient, after к/по), accusative (direct object, direction), instrumental (means, after с), prepositional (location after в/на).

Imperfective vs perfective

Imperfective verbs describe ongoing, repeated, or unfinished actions and background states; perfective verbs present a single action as completed with a result. Aspect pairs: делать/сделать, читать/прочитать.

Past tense gender endings

Past tense adds -л for masculine, -ла for feminine, -ло for neuter, -ли for plural to the infinitive stem: он сказал, она сказала, они сказали. The ending reveals an omitted subject.

Double negation in Russian

Russian requires negative concord: не plus никого, ничего, никогда, нигде, никуда. Я ничего не знаю literally means 'I don't know nothing' but is standard and means 'I know nothing'.

Numbers with nouns

After 2, 3, 4 use genitive singular (два года, три книги); after 5 and above use genitive plural (пять лет, шесть книг). Numbers ending in 1 take nominative singular.

Verb of motion prefixes

Prefixes specify direction: при- arrival, у- departure, вы- exit, в- entry, до- reaching, пере- crossing, по- setting off. Root verbs идти/ехать are unidirectional; ходить/ездить are multidirectional.

False friends caution

Similar-looking words can differ in meaning: аккуратный means tidy not accurate; магазин means shop not magazine; симпатичный means likeable or attractive, not sympathetic.

Reflexive verbs with -ся

The postfix -ся/-сь removes or redirects the object: продаётся (is sold), открывается (opens), называется (is called). Frequent in signs, adverts, and impersonal statements.

Participles as clause compressors

Active present читающий (who reads), active past прочитавший (who has read), passive прочитанный (which was read). Suffixes mark tense and voice, replacing relative clauses in formal prose.

Impersonal -о statements

Short neuter adjectives ending in -о express impersonal evaluation: важно (it is important), интересно (it is interesting), запрещено (it is forbidden). Notices often carry the main point this way.

Time expression patterns

через + accusative means 'in' a future interval (через час); назад + accusative means 'ago' (год назад); до + genitive means 'before'; после + genitive means 'after'.

Cognates as reading footholds

International vocabulary is transparent in Russian: информация, проблема, театр, компьютер, экономика. Use these to anchor meaning quickly, then confirm with surrounding grammar.

ты versus вы register

Use ты with friends, peers, children, and family; use вы with adults, officials, strangers, and in formal writing. Mixing them within one text is a register error.

Formal letter frame

Formal Russian letter: Здравствуйте, уважаемый… (address), body paragraphs, then С уважением, + name. Informal: Привет! … Пока! or До свидания.

Imperative aspect choice

Perfective imperative gives one completed request (напиши, прочитай, позвони); imperfective imperative gives ongoing or repeated instruction (пиши, читай, звони).

Prepositions and cases

у, от, до, из, с, без, для, около take genitive; к, по take dative; в, на take accusative for direction but prepositional for location; с takes instrumental for means.

Cohesive connectors

Sequence: во-первых, во-вторых, затем. Addition: кроме того, также. Contrast: однако, зато. Cause: поэтому, так как. Conclusion: таким образом, в заключение.

Text-type conventions

письмо has greeting, body, closing; объявление has headline, details, contact; статья has headline, introduction, argument, conclusion; дневник has dated entries in first person.

Russian stress is lexical

Stress is not predictable and can change meaning: за́мок (castle) versus замо́к (lock); му́ка (torment) versus мука́ (flour). Learn stress with each new word.

Akanye vowel reduction

Unstressed о is pronounced [a]: Москва sounds like [масква]. Unstressed е and я reduce toward [i]. This reduction is a marker of natural standard pronunciation.

Final devoicing rule

Voiced consonants devoice word-finally and before voiceless consonants: друг → [друк], всё → [фсё], ложка → [лошка]. Voiceless consonants voice before б, д, г, ж, з.

Soft sign palatalisation

The soft sign ь and the letters е, ё, ю, я soften the preceding consonant. Hard versus soft can change meaning: угол (corner) versus уголь (coal).

Russian fillers and hedges

Natural planning devices: ну (well), значит (so/then), как бы (sort of), то есть (that is), наверное (probably), по-моему (in my opinion). They sustain fluency during formulation.

Discussion answer frame

State position (Я считаю, что…), justify (потому что…), exemplify (например…), concede (хотя…), conclude (таким образом…). This structure satisfies extended-response criteria.

Name and patronymic address

Formal Russian address uses first name plus patronymic without surname: Иван Петрович, Анна Сергеевна. Using only a first name with an adult can signal disrespect.

Suppletive comparatives

Irregular comparatives: хороший → лучше, плохой → хуже, большой → больше, маленький → меньше. Compare with чем plus nominative or genitive: лучше, чем раньше.

Genitive singular endings

Masculine and neuter take -а/-я (дома, моря); feminine takes -ы/-и (книги, недели); feminine in -ь takes -и (тетради). Used after у, от, до, из, без, для.

Aspect in infinitives

After начать, продолжать, кончить use imperfective (начать читать); after успеть, забыть, удаться use perfective (успеть сделать). The infinitive aspect signals intended meaning.

Accusative versus prepositional

в/на + accusative marks direction or destination (иду в школу); в/на + prepositional marks location (учусь в школе). The case, not the preposition, carries the distinction.

Russian question intonation

Yes/no questions rise sharply on the stressed syllable of the final word; wh-questions with кто, что, где, когда, почему fall. Intonation, not word order, marks the question.

Reflexive possessive свой

свой refers back to the subject of the clause regardless of person: Он взял свою книгу; Я люблю свою работу. Using его/её instead points to someone else's possession.

Writing task point coverage

Marks are allocated per required point (audience, purpose, content items) as well as for language. Missing a stipulated point costs more than a minor grammatical error.