Breakdown of Опытный врач помогает пациенту.
помогать
to help
врач
the doctor
пациент
the patient
опытный
experienced
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Questions & Answers about Опытный врач помогает пациенту.
Why is the noun "пациенту" in the dative case, and what does it tell us about the verb "помогать"?
In Russian, the verb помогать (to help) requires its object to be in the dative case. The form пациенту is the dative singular of пациент, indicating the person who receives the help. This case marking shows that “help” is directed toward the patient rather than being a direct, accusative object.
How do the adjective опытный and the noun врач agree with each other in this sentence?
The adjective опытный is in the masculine singular nominative form, which matches the noun врач (doctor), also in the masculine singular nominative. In Russian, adjectives must agree with their nouns in gender, number, and case, so опытный врач correctly pairs an experienced doctor as the subject of the sentence.
Why are there no articles like "a" or "the" before "врач" or "пациенту" in the Russian sentence?
Russian does not have articles. Definiteness or indefiniteness is usually understood from context rather than from specific words equivalent to English articles. Therefore, врач and пациент appear without any articles, and the sentence still clearly conveys that an experienced doctor is helping a patient.
What does the conjugation of the verb помогает tell us about the action, and why is the present tense used here?
The verb помогает is in the 3rd person singular present tense and is of the imperfective aspect. This form tells us that the action is currently taking place or is viewed as an ongoing, habitual action. It indicates that the experienced doctor is actively or regularly providing help to the patient.
Is the typical word order in "Опытный врач помогает пациенту." fixed in Russian, and can it be rearranged without changing the meaning?
Russian typically follows a Subject-Verb-Object order, as seen in this sentence. However, thanks to its rich case system, Russian word order is quite flexible. Rearranging the words might change the emphasis or focus of the sentence, but the grammatical roles remain clear due to the case endings. For example, placing пациенту at the beginning could emphasize the patient, while still preserving the overall meaning.