Russian Determinative Pronouns

Russian grammar --> Determinative Pronouns

Determinative pronouns are words used to emphasize nouns and pronouns. Their function is to define one or more objects in a class of similar ones. In Russian, this group of pronouns includes the words сам, самый, весь, всякий, каждый, иной, любой, другой, всяк, всяческий.

Russian determinative pronouns

In Russian, the following determinative pronouns are used:

  • сам: it corresponds to English pronouns ending in -self. It is used to emphasize a noun or a pronoun in a phrase or sentence.
  • самый: it corresponds to English the very in expressions like "the very same" or "at the very end". It is used to precise a point in space or time.
  • весь: it corresponds to English words the whole , entire, all when used as a modifier of a noun. If it is used as a subject or an object, it corresponds to English everyone/everybody (if the plural form is used) or everything (if the neuter singular form is used).
  • каждый: it corresponds to English each, every.
  • любой: it corresponds to English any, anyone.
  • другой: it corresponds to English another.
  • всякий: it corresponds to English any or every. This pronoun may be used as a synonyme to the words каждый and любой. It has a short archaic form всяк.
  • иной: it corresponds to English another, other.
  • всяческий: it correspond to English all kinds of.

Declension of Russian determinative pronouns

Russian determinative pronouns agree in gender, number and case of nouns they modify. In other words, they decline, and their behavior in a phrase or sentence is similar to the behavior of adjectives.

The tables below represent the complete declensions of Russian determinative pronouns сам and весь. Notice that they reflect the animacy of the modified nouns and obey the declension rule of animate/inanimate referents in the accusative forms.

Сам

Case Singular Plural
masculine  neuter  feminine
Nom сам само сама сами
Gen самого самой самих
Dat самому самой самим
Acc Nom/Gen само саму Nom/Gen
Ins самим самой самими
Prep самом самой самих

Весь

Case Singular Plural
masculine  neuter  feminine
Nom весь всё вся все
Gen всего всей всех
Dat всему всей всем
Acc Nom/Gen всего всю Nom/Gen
Ins всем всей всеми
Prep всём всей всех

The declension of determinative pronouns самый, каждый, любой, иной is similar to the declension of hard-stem adjectives.

The declension of determinative pronouns другой, всякий, всяческий is similar to the declension of adjectives with stem ending in -г, -к, -х.