Breakdown of Оба участника достигают высокого уровня мастерства.
высокий
tall / high (of a level or amount)
участник
participant
оба
both (m/n)
уровень
level
мастерство
mastery
достигать
to achieve / to reach (a quantity or level)
Questions & Answers about Оба участника достигают высокого уровня мастерства.
Why is it "участника" (singular) instead of plural after "оба"?
The word оба (both) behaves grammatically just like the number два (two). When it is in the nominative case and describes a masculine or neuter noun, it forces that noun into the genitive singular. Since участник (participant) is masculine, it becomes участника.
Why is the object of the sentence (высокого уровня) in the genitive case instead of the accusative?
In Russian, certain verbs demand the genitive case for their direct object. The verb достигать (to achieve / to reach) is one of these verbs. Because of this rule, the phrase высокий уровень must change to высокого уровня.
There are two genitive parts in a row: высокого уровня and мастерства. Why?
This is a "chain" of genitives, which is very common in Russian. The first part, высокого уровня, is in the genitive because it is the object of the verb достигают. The second part, мастерства (from the neuter noun мастерство), is in the genitive to show a relation to the noun before it, translating as "of mastery".
Could we use the perfective verb "достигнут" here instead?
If you used the perfective достигнут, it would change the tense of the sentence to the future: "Both participants will achieve..." By using the imperfective достигают, the sentence describes a general fact, a present-tense state, or a repeated process.
Learn Оба участника достигают высокого уровня мастерства and more in Russian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free