Мы молча шли по аллее, потому что после долгого дня хотелось тишины.

the day

Breakdown of Мы молча шли по аллее, потому что после долгого дня хотелось тишины.

• потому что: because
• мы: we
• по: along

Questions & Answers about Мы молча шли по аллее, потому что после долгого дня хотелось тишины.

Why is молча used here?

Молча is an adverb meaning silently, without speaking, or in silence.

It describes how they were walking:

• Мы шли = we were walking
• Мы молча шли = we were walking silently

A learner might expect something like an adjective, but Russian uses the adverb молча very naturally in this kind of sentence.

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Why is the verb шли used instead of ходили?

Russian distinguishes between two common verbs for to go/walk on foot:

• идти / шёл, шли = to be going, moving in one direction, at a particular time
• ходить / ходил, ходили = to go habitually, repeatedly, or in more than one direction

Here, the sentence describes one ongoing movement along the alley at that moment, so шли is the right choice.

• Мы молча шли по аллее = We were walking silently along the alley.
• Мы молча ходили по аллее would sound more like we used to walk around there, or walked back and forth.

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Why is it шли and not a form with gender, like шёл or шла?