Questions & Answers about Никто не подошёл к директору.
Why do we use к директору instead of going "to" them using в or на?
The preposition к means "up to" or "towards." In Russian, when your destination is a person (like the director), you always use к. It forces the noun into the Dative case, which is why the masculine noun директор gets the -у ending to become директору.
Wait, doesn't Никто не подошёл literally mean "Nobody didn't approach"?
Yes! Unlike English, Russian requires a double negative. Whenever you use a negative word like никто (nobody), нигде (nowhere), or ничего (nothing), you must also put the particle не (not) in front of the verb. It emphasizes the negative rather than canceling it out.
How does the verb подошёл relate to the preposition к?
Подошёл (walked up to / approached) is the past tense of подойти. The prefix подо- (a spelling variation of под-) adds the meaning of "approaching" or "coming close to" the base verb of motion. Verbs with this prefix naturally partner with the preposition к to show who or what you are getting close to.
Why is the verb подошёл in the masculine form if "nobody" doesn't have a gender?