Breakdown of Новая грамматическая тема: творительный падеж также используется для временной роли.
Questions & Answers about Новая грамматическая тема: творительный падеж также используется для временной роли.
Новая грамматическая тема is in the nominative singular, and all the words agree with тема:
- тема – noun, feminine, nominative singular
- новая – adjective, feminine, nominative singular (agreeing with тема)
- грамматическая – adjective, feminine, nominative singular (also agreeing with тема)
Russian adjectives must agree with the noun in gender, number, and case, so since тема is feminine, singular, nominative, both adjectives take the same form: -ая ending in the nominative feminine singular.
Russian often omits the verb есть in the present tense, especially in:
- headlines
- titles
- labels
- short explanatory statements
So instead of a full sentence like:
- Новая грамматическая тема — это то, что…
(A new grammar topic is something that…)
you can just have a sort of heading + explanation:
- Новая грамматическая тема:
творительный падеж также используется для временной роли.
Think of it as:
- New grammar topic:
The instrumental case is also used for a temporal role.
The colon : plays the role of “is/are” here in a very compact, heading-like style.
Творительный падеж is the instrumental case.
- творительный – adjective, masculine, nominative singular
- падеж – noun, masculine, nominative singular
It’s in the nominative because in the second part of the sentence:
- творительный падеж также используется для временной роли
творительный падеж is the subject of the verb используется.
So the structure is:
[Subject in nominative] + [verb] + [other information]
Literally: The instrumental case is also used for a temporal role.
Both также and тоже can be translated as also / too, but they are used a bit differently.
In this sentence:
- творительный падеж также используется…
implies: In addition to other functions, the instrumental case is *also used for a temporal role.*
также:
- more formal and bookish
- often used to mean “in addition, furthermore, also”
- connects facts or functions:
Он преподаватель и также переводчик.
(He is a teacher and also a translator.)
тоже:
- more conversational
- often means “too / as well”, especially in comparisons between people/things:
Я тоже хочу. – I want (it) too.
Here, because the sentence is in a formal / textbook style and describes an additional grammatical use, также is the better choice.
используется comes from the verb использоваться (to be used).
Form analysis:
- verb: использоваться
- tense: present
- person/number: 3rd person singular
- voice: passive (reflexive passive)
It’s singular because the subject is творительный падеж, which is singular:
- творительный падеж используется…
The instrumental case is used…
If the subject were plural, the verb would be plural:
- Падежи используются… – Cases are used…
The preposition для (for) in Russian always takes the genitive case.
So:
- роль (nominative) → роли (genitive singular)
- временная (nominative feminine) → временной (genitive feminine singular, agreeing with роли)
Hence: для временной роли.
Case breakdown:
- для
- генитив = “for (the purpose / function of) …”
Other prepositions would change the meaning:
- в временной роли (actually: в временной роли is awkward; more natural would be в роли временного обстоятельства etc.) – would suggest in the role of something, not “for the temporal role” as a grammatical function.
- как временная роль – as a temporal role (emphasis on acting as, not “used for”).
Here, для временной роли is neutral and technical:
“is also used for (the) temporal role” (i.e. for expressing time relations).
In linguistics, a temporal role is a function that shows time-related information: when, how long, during what period, etc.
The sentence says that the instrumental case is also used to express time in some constructions—for example:
- летом – in summer (instrumental)
- утром – in the morning (instrumental in some uses)
So для временной роли means “for expressing temporal meanings,” i.e. for showing time circumstances in a sentence.
временной is the adjective from время (time), and here it is:
- gender: feminine
- number: singular
- case: genitive (because of для)
- form: short-type ending -ой used for feminine genitive singular after soft stems
It agrees with роли:
- временной роли – both words: feminine, singular, genitive
Compare the paradigm of the adjective временной:
- nominative feminine singular: временная (e.g. временная роль)
- genitive feminine singular: временной (e.g. для временной роли)
The change from -ая to -ой is the normal feminine nominative → genitive shift for this adjective type.
Both orders are grammatically correct, but the focus changes slightly.
Творительный падеж также используется для временной роли.
Neutral/default order. The topic is творительный падеж; you are stating one more of its functions.
Meaning: The instrumental case is also used for a temporal role.Также используется творительный падеж для временной роли.
This sounds like you are continuing a list of things that are used for a temporal role, and now you add the instrumental case.
Rough nuance: Also, the instrumental case is used for a temporal role.
The first version (with творительный падеж at the beginning) is more natural in a textbook where the case itself is the main topic.
Yes. In grammar explanations, Russian very often uses impersonal / passive-sounding constructions to describe rules neutrally.
- творительный падеж используется для…
The instrumental case is used for… (by speakers, by the language, etc.)
If you used an active form:
- (Люди) используют творительный падеж для временной роли.
(People) use the instrumental case for a temporal role.
This is grammatically fine but stylistically less typical in grammar descriptions.
The passive используется sounds more objective and rule-like, which fits the textbook style.