Breakdown of Он куда-то пошёл.
он
he / it (for a masculine noun) / it (for a neuter noun)
пойти
to go (perfective, on foot) / to start (of rain, snow)
куда-то
somewhere (destination)
Questions & Answers about Он куда-то пошёл.
What does the -то part do to куда?
The suffix -то turns question words into indefinite "some-" words. Since куда asks "where to" (direction), adding -то creates куда-то, meaning "to somewhere".
Why use куда-то instead of где-то for "somewhere"?
In English, the word "somewhere" is used for both location and direction. Russian makes a strict difference. Because he is actively moving toward a destination, we must use the directional куда-то rather than the static location word где-то.
Why is the verb пошёл used here instead of ходил?
The verb пошёл means he set off on foot and has not returned yet. If we used ходил, it would mean he went somewhere and came back, completing a round trip. Since we just know he left to go somewhere, пошёл is the natural choice to show he is currently gone.
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