Kotoryy: the word that bends by itself
Kotoryy takes its gender from the thing: kniga — kotoraya, uchebnik — kotoryy, pismo — kotoroe. You agree with it, not it with you. For example: “Это книга, которую я тебе советовал” — This is the book I recommended to you. A rule from the Russian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Kotoryy takes its gender from the thing: kniga — kotoraya, uchebnik — kotoryy, pismo — kotoroe. You agree with it, not it with you.
Then it bends by the role in the sentence. Drug, kotorogo ya zhdal — the one I was waiting for. Drug, kotoromu ya pozvonil — the one I phoned. Drug, o kotorom ya rasskazal — the one I spoke about. The questions whom? to whom? about whom? hand you the form.
Before kotoryy the writing puts a comma: Eto uchitel, kotoryy vedyot istoriyu. In speech a plain chto often does the job — film, chto vse khvalyat — people say it, but writing expects kotoryy.
Table
| Role | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| who? he | kotoryy | drug, kotoryy prishel |
| whom? | kotorogo | drug, kotorogo ya zhdal |
| to whom? | kotoromu | drug, kotoromu zvonyu |
| about whom? | o kotorom | drug, o kotorom rasskaz |
| she | kotoraya | kniga, kotoraya na stole |
| it | kotoroe | pismo, kotoroe prishlo |
| they | kotoryye | druzya, kotoryye zhdut |
By example
- Это книга, которую я тебе советовалEto kniga, kotoruyu ya tebe sovetovalThis is the book I recommended to you
- Друг, которому я звонил, живёт в МосквеDrug, kotoromu ya zvonil, zhivyot v MoskveThe friend I called lives in Moscow
- Дом, в котором я вырос, стоит у рекиDom, v kotorom ya vyros, stoit u rekiThe house I grew up in stands by the river
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
Kotoryy: the Russian relative word?
Kotoryy takes its gender from the thing: kniga — kotoraya, uchebnik — kotoryy, pismo — kotoroe. You agree with it, not it with you.
Kotorogo, kotoromu: which form when?
Then it bends by the role in the sentence. Drug, kotorogo ya zhdal — the one I was waiting for. Drug, kotoromu ya pozvonil — the one I phoned. Drug, o kotorom ya rasskazal — the one I spoke about. The questions whom? to whom? about whom? hand you the form.
A comma before kotoryy?
Before kotoryy the writing puts a comma: Eto uchitel, kotoryy vedyot istoriyu. In speech a plain chto often does the job — film, chto vse khvalyat — people say it, but writing expects kotoryy.
Kotoryy or chto in speech?
Before kotoryy the writing puts a comma: Eto uchitel, kotoryy vedyot istoriyu. In speech a plain chto often does the job — film, chto vse khvalyat — people say it, but writing expects kotoryy.
What does it look like in a Russian example sentence?
“Это книга, которую я тебе советовал” (Eto kniga, kotoruyu ya tebe sovetoval) — This is the book I recommended to you. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.