Breakdown of Они не могут справляться с трудными задачами одни.
не
not
они
they
трудный
difficult
мочь
to be able to
задача
task
с
with (also со)
один
alone
справляться
to cope / to manage (deal with a task or problem)
Questions & Answers about Они не могут справляться с трудными задачами одни.
Why is the word for alone plural (одни) here?
The pronoun один changes to match the subject it describes. Since the subject is the plural pronoun Они (They), you must use the plural form одни to mean they are doing it alone or by themselves.
Why is трудными задачами in the instrumental case?
The verb справляться (to handle or to cope) requires the preposition с (with) followed by the instrumental case. Because it is plural, трудными takes the -ыми ending and задачами takes the -ами ending.
Why use the imperfective verb справляться instead of the perfective справиться?
The imperfective aspect is used here because the sentence expresses a general, ongoing inability to handle difficult tasks. If they were failing to handle one specific task right now, you would use the perfective справиться.
Could I use самостоятельно or сами instead of одни in this sentence?
Yes, but the nuance shifts slightly. Одни focuses on the state of being alone or lacking other people to help. Самостоятельно or сами focuses on independence, meaning they cannot do it on their own initiative or by their own abilities.
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