Breakdown of Он постучал в дверь и вошёл в подъезд.
и
and
он
he / it (for a masculine noun) / it (for a neuter noun)
дверь
door
в
in / to (direction)
постучать
to knock (pf)
войти
to enter (pf)
подъезд
entrance, stairwell
Questions & Answers about Он постучал в дверь и вошёл в подъезд.
Why do we say в дверь when the English translation is 'knock on the door'?
In Russian, you knock into things! The verb постучать (to knock) takes the preposition в followed by the Accusative case to show the target of your knocking.
How do we get вошёл from the dictionary form войти (to enter)?
Войти is formed by adding the prefix во- (meaning 'in' or 'into') to идти (to go on foot). Just like the past tense of идти is highly irregular (шёл, шла, шли), so is войти. You just add the prefix to the past tense forms to get вошёл (he entered), вошла (she entered), and вошли (they entered).
Why do we use the preposition в again right after вошёл?
Prefixed verbs of motion love to match their prefix with a preposition! The prefix в- or во- means 'into', and it usually pairs with the preposition в + Accusative case to tell you exactly where the person is entering.
What exactly is a подъезд?
A подъезд is the shared entrance and stairwell of an apartment building, which is a very common feature in Russian cities. Notice that it contains the root for riding or driving (езд-), because historically it was the architectural spot where carriages or cars would pull up to drop people off at the door!
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