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When I looked at the chart on the page for the genitive case, it was a little bit unclear as to how to form plural nouns, and how you know when to add certain endings. Was there something left out or do you have to memorize each nouns' genitive plural form? |
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Note: Users with enough reputation can edit this post. I marked it as a community wiki. The rules for the Genitive plural nouns are rather complex. In short, the genitive plural is formed with the help of -ов, -ев, -ей endings. Some nouns drop the last vowel (рыба -> рыб), while others change to a different word used in the plural (год -> лет, человек -> людей). The choice of the ending depends on gender of the noun (masculine, neuter, feminine), stress paterns, or which letters the "dictionary form" ends in (consonant, soft sign, etc.) The "dictionary form" is the Nominative singular. Here are the guidelines: -ов endingPick -ов for all masculine nouns ending in a consonant other than ж,ч,ш,щ Also, review the rules below and if they conflict with this one then apply them instead.
-ев endingPick -ев for all masculine nouns edning in -й and the unstressed -ец suffix. Note how -ец transforms into -ц in the plural.
-ьев endingPick -ьев for nouns whose Nominative plural form ends in -ья
-ей endingPick -ей for masculine nouns ending in -ь and ж,ч,ш,щ
Pick -ей for all feminine nouns ending in -ь
Pick -ей for neuter nouns ending in -e
Dropped last vowelThe last vowel is dropped in neuter nouns ending in -o
The last vowel is dropped in feminine and masculine nouns ending in -а, -я
Nominative singular = Genitive pluralA few nouns have the same Genitive plural as the Nonimative singular
There are more very specific rules and exceptions. If you have questions about particular words, post them in comments.
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This answer is marked "community wiki".
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Родительный падеж множественного числа (plural nouns in the genitive): Basic rule.
It's Russian so we have a lot of exceptions. Don't forget to look it up in the dictionary! |
