Breakdown of Любой водитель должен тормозить перед поворотом.
должен
must, have to (должен, должна, должны)
водитель
driver
любой
any
перед
in front of / of (with fear) / before (in time)
поворот
the turn
тормозить
to brake
Questions & Answers about Любой водитель должен тормозить перед поворотом.
Why is Любой used here instead of Каждый?
While каждый means "every," любой means "any" in the sense of "whichever one you pick." In general rules like this, любой emphasizes that the rule applies to absolutely any driver, with no exceptions.
Why do we use the imperfective verb тормозить (to brake) here instead of a perfective verb?
Because this is a general, repeated rule. When we talk about an action a person must always do or a regular habit, we use the imperfective aspect. If we were talking about one specific instance of braking on a single trip, we would use the perfective затормозить.
Why is поворот (turn) in the Instrumental case (поворотом)?
It follows the preposition перед, which translates to "before" or "in front of." The preposition перед always requires the Instrumental case, whether you are talking about physical space (in front of a turn) or time (before an event).
How would this sentence change if I wanted to say the driver must brake while going past the turn, using the lesson's word мимо?
The preposition мимо (past/by) requires the Genitive case. So, if a driver is braking while driving past a turn instead of right before taking it, you would replace перед поворотом with мимо поворота.
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