Breakdown of Соседи часто приходят к нам вечером.
мы
we
часто
often
вечером
in the evening
сосед
neighbor
к
towards, to
приходить
to arrive (on foot, impf)
Questions & Answers about Соседи часто приходят к нам вечером.
Why do we use the imperfective verb приходят here?
The word часто (often) tells us this is a repeated, habitual action. For repeated actions, you must use the imperfective verb приходить. The perfective form (like the future tense придут) is for a one-time completed arrival.
What exactly does the prefix при- add to the verb in this sentence?
The prefix при- indicates arrival. When you attach it to the base multidirectional verb ходить (to walk/go on foot), it creates приходить, which means "to arrive" or "to come over".
Why does the sentence use к нам for "to our place"? Why not use в or на?
In Russian, when you go to a person or group of people (like "us"), you must use the preposition к followed by the Dative case (нам is the Dative of мы). Prepositions like в or на are only used when going to a place or location.
Why is "in the evening" translated as вечером instead of just вечер?
вечером is the Instrumental case of the noun вечер (evening). In Russian, parts of the day are put into the Instrumental case to express "in the..." or "during the...". For example, утро (morning) becomes утром (in the morning).
Learn Соседи часто приходят к нам вечером and more in Russian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free