Breakdown of Мы почему-то поссорились.
мы
we
поссориться
to have an argument / to fall out
почему-то
for some reason
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Russian grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Мы почему-то поссорились.
How does adding -то change the meaning of почему in this sentence?
почему means "why". When you add the suffix -то, it creates an indefinite adverb meaning "for some reason". The speaker knows there was a reason they argued, but they either don't know what it is or can't explain it.
Could I say почему-нибудь instead of почему-то here?
No, because the argument already happened. You should use words ending in -то for real, specific things that actually occurred (usually in the past tense). Words ending in -нибудь are for hypothetical situations, questions, or the future, like "for any reason".
Why does the verb поссорились end in -сь?
The dictionary form of the verb is поссориться (to quarrel). The -ся at the end shows that it is a reciprocal verb, meaning the action is mutual: "we argued with each other". When conjugating in the past tense for "we" (мы), the verb ends in the vowel -и (поссорили-). After a vowel, the -ся particle always shortens to -сь.
Why use the perfective verb поссорились instead of the imperfective ссорились?