Breakdown of Начальник наказывает сотрудника за опоздание.
начальник
boss
сотрудник
employee
за
for (in exchange for)
опоздание
lateness
Questions & Answers about Начальник наказывает сотрудника за опоздание.
Why do we use за + Accusative in this sentence?
While за often means "in exchange for" (like paying for a meal) or expresses gratitude, it is also used to state the reason behind a direct reaction, such as a punishment, reward, or apology. It triggers the Accusative case, which gives us за опоздание (for the lateness).
If опоздание is in the Accusative case after за, why didn't its ending change?
Because опоздание (lateness) is an inanimate neuter noun. For neuter nouns and inanimate masculine nouns, the Accusative case looks exactly like the Nominative (dictionary) form.
Why does сотрудника have an -а ending if it's the direct object? Shouldn't it be Accusative?
It is in the Accusative case! Сотрудник (employee) is a masculine animate noun, meaning it refers to a living person. In Russian, the Accusative case for animate masculine nouns borrows the Genitive case ending, which is -а.
I recognize the root in опоздание. Is it related to the verb for being late?
Yes, it is formed from the perfective verb опоздать (to be late). The suffix -ние is a very common way to turn a verb into a neuter noun representing the action itself, similar to the "-ing" or "-tion" endings in English.