Breakdown of Король свободен, пусть он отдыхает каждый день.
он
he / it (for a masculine noun) / it (for a neuter noun)
день
day
отдыхать
to rest
каждый
every
свободный
free, available
король
king
пусть
let
Questions & Answers about Король свободен, пусть он отдыхает каждый день.
How does the word пусть work in this sentence to mean "let"?
Russian doesn't have a special verb ending to give commands to a third person (he, she, it, they). Instead, it uses the particle пусть (let) combined with a normal subject (он) and a present or future tense verb (отдыхает). Together, пусть он отдыхает functions as a third-person imperative meaning "let him rest" or "may he rest."
Why do we use the present tense отдыхает instead of a future tense verb after пусть?
The choice between present and future tense after пусть depends on the verb's aspect, which is dictated by the context. Because the sentence includes каждый день (every day), the resting is a repeated, regular action. Therefore, we must use the imperfective verb отдыхать in the present tense. If you wanted to say "let him take a rest (just once, later)," you would use the perfective future tense: пусть он отдохнёт.
Why use the short-form adjective свободен instead of свободный?
Short-form adjectives are typically used to describe temporary states or conditions. Король свободен means the king is free right now (he has free time or no immediate obligations). If you used the long form, свободный король, it would sound like a permanent characteristic, implying a king who is fundamentally free (for example, not imprisoned, or not ruled by an empire).
Why is there no preposition before каждый день?
In Russian, you don't need a preposition for expressions of frequency like "every day," "every week," or "every year." You simply put the phrase directly into the accusative case to show time. Because день is an inanimate masculine noun, its accusative form happens to look exactly the same as its dictionary (nominative) form.
Learn Король свободен, пусть он отдыхает каждый день 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