Adjective predicate without present copula

In English, we need the verb 'to be' to connect a subject to a quality (e.g., 'He is kind'). In Russian, this connection is implied by the zero copula in the present tense. Unlike noun predicates, adjective predicates generally do not take a dash (e.g., Билет дешёвый, not Билет — дешёвый). However, a dash can be used for strong logical or intonational emphasis (e.g., Погода — ужасная!).

1. Word Order Matters
In neutral speech, word order usually distinguishes between a phrase and a sentence:

• Attribute (Phrase): The adjective comes before the noun: Дешёвый билет (A cheap ticket).
• Predicate (Sentence): The adjective usually comes after the noun: Билет дешёвый (The ticket is cheap). Note that when the subject is a personal pronoun, the adjective naturally follows it to form a sentence (e.g., Он добрый - He is kind). The lack of a dash here is dictated by both the general rule for adjective predicates and the rule that pronoun subjects generally do not take a dash before predicates.

2. Agreement
The adjective must agree with the subject in gender and number, taking the nominative case:

• Masculine: Дедушка старый (The grandfather is old)
• Feminine: Девушка красивая (The girl is beautiful)
• Neuter: Яблоко красное (The apple is red)
• Plural: Дети маленькие (The children are small)

3. Short Forms
In addition to the standard long forms, Russian has short adjectives (like готов - ready, or занят - busy) that are almost exclusively used as predicates (though they survive as attributes in a few fixed idioms, like средь бела дня or на босу ногу). While long adjectives in the predicate typically denote permanent characteristics or classify the subject, short adjectives often describe temporary states, though in formal or literary contexts they are also frequently used for permanent characteristics (e.g., Она молода и красива - She is young and beautiful; Мир прекрасен - The world is beautiful). They agree with the subject in gender and number, but in modern Russian, short adjectives do not decline for case (though the fixed idioms mentioned above preserve historical case endings). A major reason to use short adjectives is that they can govern other cases or take prepositional complements, whereas long adjectives generally cannot do this when used as predicates (e.g., Он готов к экзамену - He is ready for the exam; you cannot say 'Он готовый к экзамену'). Note that short forms are only derived from qualitative adjectives (describing qualities). Relative adjectives (describing material, origin, etc., like деревянный - wooden, or русский - Russian) do not have short forms and only use the long form as a predicate. Some adjectives, like рад (glad) and должен (obliged/must), must be used in the short form to act as predicates. Also, note that a few common adjectives change meaning entirely depending on whether the long or short form is used (e.g., больной means chronically ill, while болен means sick right now; живой means lively, while жив means alive). In modern Russian, short adjectives often sound more formal, bookish, or poetic than their long-form counterparts. They can also be used to denote an excessive characteristic, translating to 'too [adjective]' (e.g., Ботинки мне велики - The shoes are too big for me).

4. Past and Future Tenses
While the present tense uses no verb, the past and future tenses require the verb быть (to be). When using these tenses with long adjectives, you have a choice: the adjective can remain in the nominative case (Билет был дешёвый - The ticket was cheap), which is preferred in everyday colloquial speech, or take the instrumental case (Билет был дешёвым), which is standard for formal, written Russian and often preferred for temporary states. However, because short adjectives do not decline for case, they do not change their form when used with быть in the past or future tenses (e.g., Он был занят - He was busy; never 'Он был занятым').