Breakdown of Они едут в центр на автобусе.
они
they
в
in / to (direction)
на
on, at / by (transport) / to (a place) / to (in answer to)
центр
center
ехать
to go (by vehicle)
автобус
bus
Questions & Answers about Они едут в центр на автобусе.
Why use едут instead of идут here?
Both mean "to go" in one direction right now, but ехать (and its forms like едут) is specifically used when you are traveling by vehicle. The verb идти (and its forms like идут) is only used for going on foot.
Why does автобус have an -е at the end in this sentence?
When talking about the mode of transport you are taking, Russian uses the preposition на followed by the Prepositional case. For masculine words ending in a consonant like автобус, we add -е to make it на автобусе.
Why do we use в for "to the center" but на for the bus?
The preposition в is used with the Accusative case to show your destination, meaning "to" or "into" a place (like в центр). However, for methods of transport, Russian always uses the preposition на (which usually means "on"), even if you are physically inside the vehicle.
If they are going "to the center", shouldn't центр change its ending to show destination?
It actually is in the Accusative case, which we use for destinations! However, because центр is a masculine, inanimate (non-living) noun, its Accusative form looks exactly the same as its basic dictionary form.
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