Inshyi and druhyi, yakyi and kotryi
Two pairs that sound almost the same and are not. For example: “Дай інший ніж, цей тупий” — Give me another knife, this one is dull. A rule from the Ukrainian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Two pairs that sound almost the same and are not.
Inshyi means another, not this one: insha liudyna, inshymy slovamy, z inshoho boku on the other hand. Druhyi means strictly number two: druhyi povverkh the second floor, druha sproba the second try. English keeps another and second apart; do the same here.
Yakyi asks what kind and joins clauses. Yakyi u vas rozmir? what size do you have. And the who-clause: liudyna, yaka pomohla the person who helped. Kotryi picks one out of a row and asks the time. Kotra hodyna? what time is it. Kotryi iz dvokh? which of the two. In who-clauses both are possible, but yakyi wins about four to one.
One smaller pair: sprava is a matter or a case, pravo is a right. To the right is pravoruch.
Table
| word | it means | example |
|---|---|---|
| inshyi | another, not this one | insha liudyna |
| druhyi | number two | druhyi povverkh |
| yakyi | what kind, who | yakyi rozmir |
| kotryi | which one, what time | kotra hodyna |
By example
- Дай інший ніж, цей тупийGive me another knife, this one is dull
- Другий вагон від початкуThe second car from the front
- Котра година? — Пів на сьомуWhat time is it? Half past six
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
Inshyi or druhyi: another vs second in Ukrainian?
Two pairs that sound almost the same and are not.
What does it look like in an example sentence Ukrainian?
“Дай інший ніж, цей тупий” — Give me another knife, this one is dull. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.