Breakdown of Мы сидели у костра и смотрели на пламя.
и
and
мы
we
на
on, at / by (transport) / to (a place) / to (in answer to)
сидеть
to sit
смотреть
to watch / to look at / make sure (in a warning)
у
at, by
костёр
the campfire
пламя
the flame
Questions & Answers about Мы сидели у костра и смотрели на пламя.
Why doesn't пламя change its ending here? It comes after на, so shouldn't it be in the accusative case?
It is in the accusative case! Пламя is one of the special neuter nouns ending in -мя (like имя and время). For all of these nouns, the accusative singular form is exactly the same as the nominative (dictionary) form.
Wait, where did the "о" or "ё" go in костра? Isn't the dictionary word for campfire костёр?
Yes, the nominative form is костёр. However, the ё here is a "fleeting vowel" that disappears when you add case endings. Since the preposition у (by/near) requires the genitive case, костёр drops its ё and takes the genitive ending -а, becoming костра.
Why do we use на + accusative (на пламя) for "looking at" instead of у like we did for "sat by/at" (у костра)?
In Russian, the verb смотреть (to look) pairs with the preposition на plus the accusative case to show the direction of your gaze. You can't use у (which takes the genitive) for this because that means "by" or "near." You aren't looking near the flame; you are directing your eyes onto it.
Both verbs (сидели, смотрели) are in the imperfective aspect. Why aren't we using perfective here?
Both actions (sitting and looking) are continuous, ongoing processes happening at the same time in the past. If you used perfective verbs, it would mean "we sat down (a single, completed action) and glanced (briefly)" instead of describing a prolonged, relaxed state of sitting and watching.
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