шмат / мала / колькі + Genitive

Genitive After Quantity Words

Level 2Sounds Like rodny paslâ šmat mala kolʹkí

Words for amounts, such as шмат (a lot), мала (little, few), трохі (a little), некалькі (several) and колькі (how many, how much), are followed by the genitive: шмат людзей (many people).

How It Works

1. The quantity words. шмат and многа (a lot, many), мала (little, few), трохі (a little, some), некалькі (several) and колькі (how many? how much?). Шмат is the most typical Belarusian word for "a lot"; многа means the same.

2. Countable nouns take the genitive plural. шмат людзей (many people), мала сяброў (few friends), некалькі дзён (several days), Колькі ў цябе братоў? (How many brothers do you have?). See genitive plural endings. Некалькі is used only with things you can count.

3. Uncountable nouns take the genitive singular. мала часу (little time), трохі цукру (a little sugar), шмат вады (a lot of water). Many masculine nouns for substances end in -у here: час → часу, цукар → цукру, снег → снегу. See genitive singular endings.

4. The verb is singular. When the quantity phrase is the subject, the verb is normally in the third person singular: У Мінску жыве шмат людзей (Many people live in Minsk).

Numbers work the same way. From five up, numbers also take the genitive plural: пяць кніг works like некалькі кніг. See five and up with the genitive plural.

Examples (6)

  1. У Мінску жыве шмат людзей.

    Many people live in Minsk.

    Людзі → людзей after шмат, and the verb stays singular.

  2. У мяне сёння мала часу.

    I have little time today.

    Час cannot be counted here, so it is the genitive singular часу.

  3. Я кладу ў каву трохі цукру.

    I put a little sugar in my coffee.

    Цукар → цукру.

  4. Я чытаю некалькі кніг адразу.

    I am reading several books at once.

    Кнігі → кніг, the genitive plural.

  5. Колькі ў цябе братоў?

    How many brothers do you have?

    Браты → братоў after колькі.

  6. На вуліцы шмат снегу.

    There is a lot of snow outside.

    Снег → снегу, the genitive singular.

Common Mistakes

  • Keeping the nominative plural after a quantity word.

    У Мінску жыве шмат людзі.
    У Мінску жыве шмат людзей.

    Шмат always needs the genitive. For countable nouns that is the genitive plural: людзі → людзей.

  • Keeping the nominative singular with an uncountable noun.

    У мяне мала час.
    У мяне мала часу.

    Uncountable nouns also go into the genitive, but they stay singular: час → часу.

How It Connects

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шмат / мала / колькі + GenitiveLevel 2Genitive After Quantity Words

Learn This First

Quantity words need the genitive plural.

Words in This Pattern

шматшматмаламалаколькінекалькітрохі