GrammatikMehr zu Zahlen

Mehr zu Zahlen

Mathematical Operations

You use: [A] [operation] [B] равно́ [Dative].

Addition: плюс
2+3=5 → Два плюс три равно́ пяти́.

Subtraction: ми́нус
10-4=6 → Де́сять ми́нус четы́ре равно́ шести́.

Multiplication: умно́жить
2*3=6 → Два умно́жить на три равно́ шести́.

Multiplication II: 2*3=6 → Два́жды три - шесть. (twice three is six)

Division: раздели́ть
6/3=2 → Шесть раздели́ть на три равно́ двум.

Results in ...: Use равно́ followed by Dative, or simply state the result, for example два плюс три - пять.

Approximations - The word order trick

If you want to say "about five," you have two options:

The formal way: Use the preposition о́коло + Genitive.

• о́коло пяти́ часо́в - about five hours

The native/colloquial way: Just reverse the word order.

• пять часо́в - Exactly 5 hours
• часо́в пять - About 5 hours

The Word "Both" (о́ба / о́бе)

о́ба: For masculine and neuter nouns: о́ба бра́та, о́ба окна́.

о́бе: For feminine nouns: о́бе сестры́, о́бе маши́ны.

Indefinite Quantifiers (Number-ish Words)

Words that don't have a specific digit but behave like numbers grammatically:

• Мно́го - many/much
• Ма́ло - few/little
• Не́сколько - several/some
• Ско́лько - how many

These always require the Genitive Singular for uncountable nouns and Genitive Plural for countables:

• Uncountable nouns → Genitive Singular
  • мно́го во́ды - much water
  • ма́ло вре́мени - little time
  • ско́лько са́хара? - how much sugar?
• Countable nouns → Genitive Plural
  • мно́го люде́й - many people
  • не́сколько книг - several books
  • ско́лько студе́нтов? - how many students?

"All Three / All Five" (Все три / Все пя́теро)

When you want to emphasize a complete group, you use все (all) followed by the number.

For objects use the standard cardinal number: Все три кни́ги - All three books.

For people it sounds much more natural to use collective numbers: Все тро́е друзе́й - All three friends.

Collective adverbs ("The Two of Us")

This is how Russians describe how a group is performing an action. These are very handy for making plans or describing a scene.

• вдвоём: The two of us / together as a pair.
• втроём, вчетверо́м, впятеро́м, вшестеро́м, всемеро́м: The three/four/five/six/seven of us.
• Мы пошли́ в кино́ вдвоём. - We went to the cinema together (just the two of us).
• Дава́йте встре́тимся втроём. - Let’s meet the three of us.
• Они́ рабо́тали вчетверо́м. - They worked as a group of four.

These forms only work with people (or animate groups), not objects. You can't use them for "two cars" or "three books".

Distributive: One each / Two each

If you are giving out items or describing a sequence, you use the preposition по + number.

• По одному́. - One each.
• По два. - Two each.
• По три биле́та. - Three tickets each.
• Да́йте по стака́ну во́ды. - Give one glass of water each.

With два, три, четы́ре the number after по stays in the Accusative: по два биле́та (two tickets each). With other numerals a bookish Dative exists, but everyday speech uses the simple form there too.

• по два биле́та - two tickets each
• по пять рубле́й (everyday) / по пяти́ рубле́й (bookish) - five rubles each

One by one - оди́н за други́м / друг за дру́гом

• Лю́ди заходи́ли оди́н за други́м. - People entered one by one.
  For when events/things happen sequentially.
• Маши́ны е́хали друг за дру́гом. - The cars drove one after another.
  For people or objects physically following each other.

Nouns for Groups (Sets)

Russian has specific nouns that represent a quantity, similar to the English word "dozen."

Па́ра: A pair or a couple. Very common in everyday speech.

• Дай мне па́ру мину́т. - Give me a couple of minutes.

Деся́ток: A set of exactly ten or about ten, common in shopping and informal counts, very common when buying eggs.

• Я купи́л деся́ток яи́ц. - I bought ten eggs.

Со́тня: A group of a hundred, can be exactly or roughly.

• На конце́рте была́ со́тня люде́й. - There were about a hundred people at the concert.

Дю́жина: A dozen (bookish or old-fashioned, less common now, but still used in literature).

• Он заказа́л дю́жину у́стриц. - He ordered a dozen oysters.

Frequency and Multipliers

Frequency: The word раз - times.

• Я был там три ра́за. - I’ve been there three times.

Multipliers: Words like двойно́й (double) or тройно́й (triple), четверно́й (quadruple).

• Двойна́я по́рция, пожа́луйста. - Double portion, please.

"Twice as much"

When comparing quantities, Russians use a specific "In [number] times" structure.

Double: в два ра́за бо́льше

• Моя́ зарпла́та в два ра́за бо́льше твое́й. - My salary is twice as much as yours.

Triple: в три ра́за бо́льше

• Их ста́ло в три ра́за бо́льше. - There are three times as many of them.

Half as much: в два ра́за ме́ньше or shorter вдво́е ме́ньше

• Э́та маши́на вдво́е деше́вле. - This car costs half as much.

Using fillers

Russians use certain large numbers to describe something vague or "somewhere in that range":

С ли́шним - With extra: You use this after any larger number to mean "and then some.":

• Сто с ли́шним рубле́й - A hundred-something rubles.
• Ему́ со́рок с ли́шним лет. - He is forty-something years old.

Э́нное коли́чество - An "N-th" amount: Borrowed from algebra, this is used in daily speech to mean "a certain, unspecified number of things."

• У меня́ э́нное коли́чество дел. - I have a bunch of things to do.
• Он потра́тил э́нную су́мму. - He spent some amount (not small).