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Questions & Answers about Песня звучит тихо.
What does Песня mean, and what is its grammatical role in the sentence?
Песня means song in English. It is a feminine noun in the nominative singular form and functions as the subject of the sentence.
What is the meaning of звучит, and how is it used?
Звучит is the third person singular present tense of the verb звучать, which means to sound. In this context, it describes how the song is being perceived sonically.
Why is тихо used here, and why isn’t an adjective used instead?
Тихо is an adverb that modifies the verb звучит, explaining how the song sounds. In Russian, when describing the manner of an action, an adverb is required, and adverbs do not change their form. An adjective (which would require agreement with the noun) would be inappropriate in this construction.
How does the word order of Песня звучит тихо compare to English sentence structure?
The sentence follows a Subject-Verb-Adverb order, which is similar to English (i.e., Song sounds quietly). Though Russian has flexible word order, placing the adverb after the verb is quite standard and clearly conveys the intended meaning.
Is there a difference between saying Песня звучит тихо and Песня тихая?
Yes, there is a subtle difference. Песня звучит тихо focuses on how the song is being performed—it tells you that the sound of the song is quiet. On the other hand, Песня тихая describes the song as having a quiet or subdued nature, emphasizing its overall character rather than the action of sounding.
What tense is used in this sentence and why is it significant?
The sentence uses the present tense, as seen in звучит. This tense indicates that the action is occurring right now, which is important for accurately describing the current state of the song’s sound.