Breakdown of Учитель хочет утвердить правило.
учитель
the teacher
хотеть
to want
правило
the rule
утвердить
to approve
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Questions & Answers about Учитель хочет утвердить правило.
Why is хочет followed by the infinitive утвердить?
In Russian, verbs of desire, intention or necessity (like хотеть, мочь, должен) are followed by an infinitive to express what someone wants, can or must do. Here хочет утвердить literally means “wants to approve/ratify.” The structure is:
- Subject (Учитель)
- Verb of desire (хочет)
- Infinitive (утвердить)
What is the difference between утвердить and утверждать?
These are aspects of the same verb:
- утверждать (imperfective) implies an ongoing, habitual or repeated action: “to be approving,” “to assert.”
- утвердить (perfective) emphasizes a single, completed action: “to approve,” “to ratify,” “to finalize.” In our sentence the teacher intends a one-time act of approval, so the perfective утвердить is used.
What does утвердить правило mean in this context?
Here утвердить правило means “to officially approve or adopt a rule.” Depending on context it can be:
- In education: the teacher wants to establish a classroom rule.
- In administration: an authority wants to ratify a regulation. In everyday speech it often carries a formal, official nuance.
Why is правило used without any preposition and what case is it?
Правило is the direct object of the transitive verb утвердить, so it stands in the accusative case. For neuter nouns ending in -о, the nominative and accusative forms look identical:
- Nominative: правило (the rule as subject)
- Accusative: правило (the rule as object)
Why is Учитель in this form and what case is it?
Учитель is the subject of the sentence and therefore appears in the nominative case. Its singular nominative form is учитель (the teacher). If you were speaking about multiple teachers, you’d use учителя.
Can we replace утвердить with other verbs like принять or ввести?
Yes, but each verb has its nuance:
- принять правило – “to adopt/accept a rule,” often used in parliaments and councils.
- ввести правило – “to introduce a rule,” emphasizing the start of applying it.
- утвердить правило – “to formally approve/ratify a rule,” highlighting official confirmation. Choose based on whether you mean adoption, introduction or formal approval.
Is this sentence formal, and in what situations would you use it?
The sentence is fairly formal due to the verb утвердить, which is used in administrative, legal or academic contexts. You would hear it:
- At school meetings: “The teacher wants to establish a new grading rule.”
- In committees or councils: “A member wants to ratify a procedure.” In casual conversation about simple household rules, you might use принять or ввести instead.