Breakdown of Он не доверяет весам из-за ошибки.
не
not
он
he / it (for a masculine noun) / it (for a neuter noun)
ошибка
mistake
доверять
to trust
Questions & Answers about Он не доверяет весам из-за ошибки.
Why is the word for "scales" in the form весам here?
The dictionary form is весы (scales), which is a plural-only noun, meaning it has no singular form. Here it takes the Dative plural ending -ам because the verb доверять (to trust) requires the Dative case.
I usually use the Accusative case for direct objects. Why does доверять trigger the Dative case?
While many English direct objects take the Accusative in Russian, certain verbs demand other cases. Verbs of trusting or believing, like доверять and верить, always take the Dative case. You can think of it as giving your trust to the scales.
What case does из-за take, and why is it used instead of потому что?
Из-за is a preposition that means "because of" (as well as "from behind") and it always requires the Genitive case. That is why ошибка (mistake) changes to ошибки. You use из-за before a noun, whereas потому что (because) is used to connect two full clauses.
Is весы related to the word вес (weight)?