Breakdown of Я не знаю, как обойти эту огромную толпу.
не
not
я
I
этот
this [f: эта, n: это]
знать
to know
как
how
огромный
huge
толпа
crowd
обойти
to go around (pf)
Questions & Answers about Я не знаю, как обойти эту огромную толпу.
Why does the verb обойти use the prefix обо- instead of just об-?
The prefix is usually об-, but it adds an -о to become обо- before certain tricky combinations of consonants, including the root for walking. Combined with the root -й- (from идти), it forms обойти (to go around on foot).
Why doesn't обойти need a preposition like вокруг (around) here?
When you add the prefix об- or обо- to a verb of motion to mean 'going around' or 'bypassing' an obstacle, the verb takes a direct object in the accusative case. You don't need a preposition; you just put эта огромная толпа (this huge crowd) directly into the accusative as эту огромную толпу.
Why do we use the perfective verb обойти rather than the imperfective обходить?
The speaker is trying to complete one specific action right now: successfully getting past this particular crowd. Because it is a single, complete action focused on a result, we use the perfective обойти. If they were talking about having to go around crowds every day, they would use the imperfective обходить.
Is it common to use an infinitive directly after как like in как обойти?
Yes! When expressing 'how to do something', Russian commonly uses a question word like как (how), где (where), or что (what) directly followed by an infinitive verb. Here, Я не знаю, как обойти simply means 'I do not know how to go around'.
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