Breakdown of Она попыталась спросить вежливо, но ответа не получила.
не
not
вежливо
politely
но
but
она
she
ответ
the answer
спросить
to ask
попытаться
to try
получить
to get
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Questions & Answers about Она попыталась спросить вежливо, но ответа не получила.
Why is the perfective verb попыта́лась used instead of the imperfective пыта́лась?
Попыта́лась presents a single, bounded attempt: she made one try. Пыта́лась (imperfective) would mean she was trying over some time or made repeated/ongoing attempts. Here the context is one attempt that led to a particular outcome, so perfective fits best.
Why is the infinitive спроси́ть (perfective) used after попыта́лась, and not спра́шивать?
With verbs of attempt such as попыта́ться/попро́бовать, Russian normally uses a perfective infinitive to express the aim as a single complete action: попыта́лась спроси́ть, попыта́лся позвони́ть, попыта́лись откры́ть. Using an imperfective infinitive here (попыта́лась спра́шивать) is unidiomatic.
Why is получи́ла perfective? What would не получа́ла mean?
Perfective не получи́ла states that in that particular instance the result did not occur (she did not end up getting an answer). Imperfective не получа́ла would describe a longer period or a habitual situation: she wasn’t receiving answers (over time), or it wasn’t her habit to receive answers.
Why is it отве́та не получи́ла (genitive) instead of accusative? Could I say не получи́ла отве́т?
Under negation, Russian often uses the genitive for an indefinite direct object (the “genitive of negation”), especially to stress absence: не получи́ла отве́та ≈ “got no answer (at all).” Accusative не получи́ла отве́т is possible, but it tends to imply a specific, expected answer (to a particular question) and is less idiomatic here. The genitive is the most natural choice.
Which word order is better: но отве́та не получи́ла or но не получи́ла отве́та?
Both are correct. Fronting the object (отве́та не получи́ла) highlights what she didn’t get; placing не before the verb (не получи́ла отве́та) slightly emphasizes the negated action. In everyday speech and writing, both orders are common and near‑equivalent.
Why is the subject omitted in the second clause (no second она́)?
Russian commonly drops a repeated subject when it stays the same across coordinated clauses. Она́ попыта́лась… но (она́) отве́та не получи́ла is clear without repeating она́.
Can I drop она́ from the first clause too: Попыта́лась спроси́ть вежливо, но отве́та не получи́ла?
Yes, in context where the subject is already known. In a standalone sentence, keeping она́ is safer to avoid ambiguity.
Is there any difference between спроси́ть ве́жливо and ве́жливо спроси́ть?
Both are grammatical. Adverbs are flexible in position; moving ве́жливо slightly shifts emphasis. Ве́жливо спроси́ть can sound a touch more neutral; спроси́ть ве́жливо adds mild end-focus on the manner. No change in meaning.
What about по‑ве́жливому versus ве́жливо?
Both mean “politely.” Ве́жливо is the standard adverb. По‑ве́жливому is an adverbial phrase “in a polite way,” a bit more colloquial or stylistic. Either fits here: Она́ попыта́лась по‑ве́жливому спроси́ть…
Why use но and not а? Could I use одна́ко?
Но marks a clear opposition/contradiction to an expectation (“she tried politely, but still…”). А signals a weaker contrast (“whereas”), so it’s less natural here. Одна́ко is possible and more formal/literary: Она́ попыта́лась спроси́ть ве́жливо, однако отве́та не получи́ла.
Why is there a comma before но?
Because но is a coordinating conjunction joining two independent clauses. In Russian, a comma is required before но in such cases.
Does спроси́ть need an object? How do I say “ask someone/about something”?
Patterns:
- Спроси́ть кого́? = ask someone: спроси́ть учи́теля.
- Спроси́ть у кого́? (very common) = ask of someone: спроси́ть у учи́теля.
- Спроси́ть о чём? = ask about something: спроси́ть о расписа́нии. It can also be used without an explicit object when the context implies “ask (a question).”
Why спроси́ть and not попро́сить?
Спроси́ть = to ask a question, seek information. Попроси́ть = to ask for something, make a request. Here she asked a question, not for a favor or item, so спроси́ть is correct.
Difference between попыта́лась and попро́бовала?
They often overlap. Попыта́лась emphasizes effort against difficulty (“made an attempt”). Попро́бовала is “gave it a try/experimented,” a bit more colloquial. Both work here: Она́ попро́бовала спроси́ть ве́жливо…
Is Отве́та не получи́ла idiomatic? Any alternative ways to say it?
Very idiomatic. Alternatives:
- Ей не отвели́ли. (impersonal, “no one answered her”)
- Отве́та так и не получи́ла. (adds “in the end/after all” for emphasis)
- Отве́та не бы́ло. (there was no answer)
What about stress and agreement in this sentence?
Stresses: Она́ попыта́лась спроси́ть ве́жливо, но отве́та не получи́ла. Past-tense verbs agree with the feminine subject она́, hence попыта́лась and получи́ла (feminine singular forms).