Breakdown of После обеда я возвращаюсь в библиотеку.
я
I
в
to
библиотека
the library
после
after
обед
the lunch
возвращаться
to return
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Questions & Answers about После обеда я возвращаюсь в библиотеку.
Why is обеда in the genitive case?
Because the preposition после always takes the genitive case, indicating sequence: “after lunch.”
Why is в библиотеку in the accusative case?
Because в with the accusative expresses motion into a place: here it means “return to the library.” If you were already in the library and speaking about location, you’d use в библиотеке (locative).
What does the suffix -ся add to возвращаюсь?
It makes the verb reflexive. Возвращаться means “to return” or “to come back” (on one’s own), not “to return something.”
Why use the present tense я возвращаюсь for a future action instead of the future tense я вернусь?
- Вернуться is the perfective infinitive (“to return” with focus on completion), so its future is я вернусь and stresses the act’s endpoint.
- Возвращаться is imperfective (“to be returning”) and in present tense can express scheduled or near-future actions or habitual routines. Here it implies a planned or repeated return.
What is the infinitive form of возвращаюсь, and how is it conjugated for я?
- Infinitive: возвращаться
- Present tense conjugation for я: я возвращаюсь
(Full present paradigm: я возвращаюсь, ты возвращаешься, он/она возвращается, мы возвращаемся, вы возвращаетесь, они возвращаются.)
Can I omit the pronoun я in this sentence?
Yes. Russian is a pro-drop language: the verb ending -юсь already marks the first person singular, so Возвращаюсь в библиотеку после обеда is perfectly natural.
Where is the stress in обеда and возвращаюсь?
Stress falls on the second syllable of both words:
• обе́да (a-BE-da)
• возвраща́юсь (voz-vra-SHCHA-yusʹ)
Why is there no article a or the before библиотеку?
Russian has no definite or indefinite articles. Context determines whether you mean “a library,” “the library,” etc.
Could I say Я возвращаюсь в библиотеку после обеда? Would that change anything?
Yes, you can place я at the beginning: Я возвращаюсь в библиотеку после обеда. Word order in Russian is flexible; moving я simply shifts emphasis slightly onto the subject.