Breakdown of Он надеялся скрыть правду, но её нельзя скрыть.
он
he / it (for a masculine noun) / it (for a neuter noun)
она
she / it (for a feminine noun)
но
but
правда
truth
Questions & Answers about Он надеялся скрыть правду, но её нельзя скрыть.
Why is the perfective verb скрыть used after нельзя here instead of the imperfective?
This is the core of our current lesson! When нельзя is paired with a perfective verb like скрыть, it means the action is impossible to achieve ('it cannot be hidden'). If we used the imperfective скрывать, it would mean the action is prohibited ('you must not hide it').
Why do we use the imperfective verb надеялся (hoped) next to the perfective verb скрыть (to hide)?
надеялся describes an ongoing state of mind in the past, which requires the imperfective aspect. However, the specific action he wanted to successfully complete (скрыть) focuses on a one-time result, so it takes the perfective aspect.
What word does её refer to, and what case is it in?
её translates to 'it' here and refers back to the feminine noun правда (the truth). It is in the accusative case because it acts as the direct object of the second verb скрыть (to hide it).
Why does правду end in -у?
It is the accusative case form of the feminine noun правда. It changes to an -у ending because it is the direct object receiving the action of the first verb скрыть.