Breakdown of Изучая иностранный язык, полезно читать вслух, произнося фразы медленно.
читать
to read
изучать
to study
язык
language
медленно
slowly
полезный
healthy, good for you (of food) / useful
иностранный
foreign
фраза
phrase
произносить
to pronounce
вслух
aloud
Questions & Answers about Изучая иностранный язык, полезно читать вслух, произнося фразы медленно.
How is изучая formed here?
It is an imperfective verbal adverb made from the verb изучать (to study). To form it, you take the 'they' form of the verb (изучают), drop the last two letters, and add -я. It indicates an ongoing action ('while studying') that happens at the same time as the main action.
How do we get произнося from произносить (to pronounce)?
Just like with the previous word, you look at the 'they' form, which is произносят. You drop the -ят ending and replace it with -я, giving you произнося (pronouncing).
Why are there commas after язык and before произнося?
In Russian, verbal adverbs that have their own objects or modifiers (like иностранный язык or фразы медленно) create a special phrase. These phrases must always be separated from the rest of the sentence by commas, no matter where they appear.
A verbal adverb usually shares the subject of the main verb. Since the main clause (полезно читать) is impersonal and has no subject, is this an exception?
Sort of! The strict rule is that the verbal adverb and the main verb must share a subject. However, in an impersonal sentence using an infinitive (like читать here), the implied subject is 'anyone' or 'people in general'. Since 'anyone' is doing the studying, reading, and pronouncing, the rule is satisfied.
How does the word вслух (aloud) relate to слух (hearing)?
The adverb вслух is formed by combining the prefix в- (in/into) with слух (hearing). So reading 'aloud' is literally reading 'into the hearing' of yourself or others.
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