Breakdown of Мы должны завершить запуск к среде.
мы
we
среда
Wednesday
должен
must, have to (должен, должна, должны)
завершить
to complete (perfective)
Questions & Answers about Мы должны завершить запуск к среде.
Why does "by Wednesday" translate to к среде?
To express a deadline—meaning you need to complete something by a certain time or day—Russian uses the preposition к followed by the Dative case. The dictionary form for Wednesday is среда, and its Dative form is среде.
Why do we use the perfective verb завершить here instead of the imperfective завершать?
Since there is a strict deadline (к среде), the focus is on successfully getting the result done by that time, rather than the ongoing process of finishing it. Perfective verbs are almost always used for single, completed actions tied to a specific deadline.
Is должны a verb? Why does it end in -ы?
должны translates as a verb in English ("must" or "have to"), but in Russian, it is actually a short-form adjective. Because of this, it changes its ending to agree with the subject in gender and number. Since Мы (we) is plural, we use the plural form должны.
What case is the word запуск in, and what exactly does it mean?
It is in the Accusative case because it is the direct object (the thing being completed). Since запуск (launch, startup) is an inanimate masculine noun, its Accusative form looks exactly the same as its dictionary (Nominative) form. It is commonly used in business, tech, or aerospace for launching a project, product, or system.