Breakdown of В деревне вечером светятся фонари.
в
in
деревня
the village
вечером
in the evening
светиться
to glow
фонарь
the streetlight
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Questions & Answers about В деревне вечером светятся фонари.
Why is the subject фонари placed after the verb in this sentence?
Russian word order is more flexible than English. In this sentence, the adverbial phrases В деревне (specifying location) and вечером (specifying time) come first to set the scene, while the subject фонари appears after the verb светятся. This order emphasizes the setting and time before mentioning what is performing the action.
What case is used in В деревне and what does it indicate?
The phrase В деревне uses the prepositional case. The preposition в combined with деревне (the prepositional form of деревня) indicates the location, meaning “in the village.”
What is the function of вечером in the sentence, and what case does it use?
Вечером functions as an adverbial modifier of time, telling us when the event takes place. It is in the instrumental case form of вечер, used in Russian to express the idea “in the evening.”
What does the reflexive ending -ятся in светятся signify?
The reflexive ending -ятся turns the verb into an intransitive (or sometimes impersonal) form. In this sentence, it indicates that the lanterns glow by themselves, without an external agent, implying an inherent quality or state.
How does the verb светятся agree with its subject?
The verb светятся is in the third-person plural form, which agrees with its plural subject фонари. This agreement ensures that the action of glowing correctly corresponds to the fact that there are multiple lanterns.