Slomatsya, ostatsya: what -sya does
The tail -sya turns the action back on the one who does it: myt — mytsya, katit — katatsya, slomat — slomatsya. The cup was broken by someone; the phone broke by itself. For example: “Телефон упал и сломался” — The phone fell and broke. A rule from the Russian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
The tail -sya turns the action back on the one who does it: myt — mytsya, katit — katatsya, slomat — slomatsya. The cup was broken by someone; the phone broke by itself.
With some words the tail is stuck for good: smeyatsya, boyatsya, ostatsya, registrirovatsya. Without it the word simply does not exist.
Translation stumbles here: where two different verbs are taken, the language just adds -sya to one.
Table
| Without -sya | With -sya | Who acts |
|---|---|---|
| myt | mytsya | someone washes another — one washes oneself |
| katit | katatsya | they roll a thing — it rolls itself |
| slomat | slomatsya | they break a thing — the thing broke |
| odevat | odevatsya | one dresses another — one dresses oneself |
By example
- Телефон упал и сломалсяTelefon upal i slomalsyaThe phone fell and broke
- Кошка моется после едыKoshka moetsya posle edyThe cat washes itself after eating
- Мы остались дома из-за дождяMy ostalis doma iz-za dozhdyaWe stayed home because of the rain
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
What sya means in a verb?
The tail -sya turns the action back on the one who does it: myt — mytsya, katit — katatsya, slomat — slomatsya. The cup was broken by someone; the phone broke by itself.
Slomatsya or slomat?
The tail -sya turns the action back on the one who does it: myt — mytsya, katit — katatsya, slomat — slomatsya. The cup was broken by someone; the phone broke by itself.
Katatsya or katit?
The tail -sya turns the action back on the one who does it: myt — mytsya, katit — katatsya, slomat — slomatsya. The cup was broken by someone; the phone broke by itself.
Why registrirovatsya takes sya?
With some words the tail is stuck for good: smeyatsya, boyatsya, ostatsya, registrirovatsya. Without it the word simply does not exist.
What does it look like in a Russian example sentence?
“Телефон упал и сломался” (Telefon upal i slomalsya) — The phone fell and broke. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.