Breakdown of Он поёт душой, а не только словами.
не
not
он
he / it (for a masculine noun) / it (for a neuter noun)
а
and (contrastive)
только
only
слово
word
петь
to sing
душа
soul
Questions & Answers about Он поёт душой, а не только словами.
Why is there no Russian word for 'with' before душой and словами?
In Russian, the Instrumental case by itself shows the tool or means used to perform an action. If you used the preposition с (with), it would mean 'accompanied by' — as if his soul and his words were standing next to him singing backup!
Why does the sentence use the conjunction а instead of но?
The conjunction а is used to show a direct contrast, especially in 'this, not that' structures. You use а to correct a statement or weigh mutually exclusive things, while но is used more like 'however' to add a contrasting but non-contradictory thought.
How are the forms душой and словами made?
They are both in the Instrumental case. душой is the singular Instrumental form of the feminine noun душа (soul). словами is the plural Instrumental form of the neuter noun слово (word).
Why does не только sit exactly where it does in the sentence?
Just like in English, the negative particle не and the qualifier только stay glued directly to the concept they modify. Because they modify the idea of 'with words' (словами), they must be placed right in front of it.
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