Questions & Answers about Никто не спал во время матча.
Why does матч change to матча here?
It follows the phrase во время (during), which always requires the genitive case. Since матч is a masculine noun ending in a consonant, you add -а to make it genitive.
Why is there a не before the verb when Никто already means nobody?
Russian strictly uses double negatives. Whenever you have a negative pronoun like никто (nobody) or ничего (nothing), you still have to put не before the verb. Literally, the sentence says "Nobody did not sleep."
Why is во время written as two words if it just means "during"?
It functions as a preposition meaning "during", but literally it translates to "in the time [of]". Remembering this literal translation is a great trick to help you remember why the noun that follows it must take the genitive case.
Why use the imperfective verb спал instead of a perfective equivalent?
The phrase во время матча highlights a continuous, ongoing stretch of time. Using the imperfective спал correctly emphasizes the continuous state of not sleeping throughout that entire duration.
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