Без ледоступов можно поскользнуться.

Because без always requires the genitive case in Russian.

The base noun is ледоступы. It is normally used in the plural because these are something you wear on both feet, like glasses or scissors in English.

So:

• ледоступы = nominative plural
• без ледоступов = without ice cleats / traction cleats

This is a very common pattern:

• без сахара = without sugar
• без денег = without money
• без перчаток = without gloves

Ледоступы are anti-slip devices you put on your shoes or boots to walk on ice. In English, depending on context, they might be called:

• ice cleats
• traction cleats
• anti-slip shoe grips
• ice grips

The word is built from:

• лёд = ice
• ступать / ступа- = to step

So the idea is something like gear for stepping on ice.

Можно means something like:

• it is possible
• one can
• you can

In this sentence, можно поскользнуться means it’s possible to slip or you could slip.

Russian often uses можно + infinitive in general statements where English might use you can, one can, or it’s possible to.

Examples:

• Здесь можно курить. = You can smoke here.
• Тут можно упасть. = You could fall here.
• Без ледоступов можно поскользнуться. = Without ice cleats, you can slip.

There is no specific subject like я or ты because the statement is general.

Because поскользнуться means to slip once, as a single event.

Compare:

• скользить = to glide / to be sliding / to slip along
• поскользнуться = to slip suddenly, to lose footing once

In this sentence, the idea is not to be sliding around, but to accidentally slip. So поскользнуться is the natural choice.

Because it refers to a single completed event: one instance of slipping.

In Russian:

• perfective verbs often describe a complete action or one occurrence
• imperfective verbs often describe process, repetition, or general ongoing action

Поскользнуться is perfective, so it fits the meaning you might slip as one accident.

If you used an imperfective idea, it would sound more like repeated or ongoing slipping, which is not what this sentence means.

The -ся ending marks the verb as reflexive, but reflexive verbs in Russian do not always translate as literally oneself.

Here, поскользнуться is just the normal verb meaning to slip. You do not need to think of it as to slip oneself in English.

Many Russian verbs with -ся have idiomatic meanings:

• улыбаться = to smile
• бояться = to be afraid
• надеяться = to hope
• поскользнуться = to slip

So in this case, just learn поскользнуться as the standard verb.

Because Russian often leaves out the subject in general statements.

Без ледоступов можно поскользнуться is not about one specific person. It means something like:

• Without ice cleats, you can slip
• Without ice cleats, one can slip
• It’s possible to slip without ice cleats

English often uses you for this general meaning, but Russian commonly uses impersonal structures like можно + infinitive.

Yes. Russian word order is flexible, though the original version sounds natural.

Possible variants:

• Без ледоступов можно поскользнуться.
• Можно поскользнуться без ледоступов.

Both are understandable. The original puts без ледоступов first, which highlights the condition without ice cleats.

Russian word order often changes emphasis rather than basic meaning.

In this context, it most naturally means without wearing/using them.

Since ледоступы are something attached to your shoes for walking safely, the sentence implies:

• if you walk on ice without them,
• you may slip

So the practical meaning is without using traction cleats on your footwear.

The stress is: поскользну́ться

A rough pronunciation guide is:

• pa-skalz-NOO-tsa

Important points:

• the stress falls on -ну́-
• the final -ться is pronounced roughly like -ца
• unstressed о is reduced in pronunciation, so it does not sound like a full English o

Yes, in many contexts that works well.

Possible translations include:

• you can slip
• you may slip
• you could slip
• it’s easy to slip
• it’s possible to slip

The best English choice depends on tone:

• you can slip = neutral, direct
• you may slip = slightly more formal or cautionary
• you could slip = natural warning tone

So Without ice cleats, you could slip is a very natural translation.