Breakdown of Этот бланк надо написать по-русски.
этот
this [f: эта, n: это]
по-русски
in Russian
написать
to write (perfective)
надо
must, need to
бланк
form (to fill in)
Questions & Answers about Этот бланк надо написать по-русски.
The English translation says 'This form must be written', making it a passive sentence. Is the Russian sentence passive too?
No, Russian frequently uses the impersonal word надо (need/must) plus an infinitive like написать instead of the passive voice. Literally, the Russian sentence says 'It is necessary to write this form.' The person doing the writing is left out, which translates naturally to the English passive.
If Этот бланк is not the subject, what case is it in?
It is in the accusative case, acting as the direct object of the verb написать. Because бланк is a masculine inanimate noun, its accusative form looks exactly the same as its nominative (dictionary) form.
Why use the perfective verb написать here instead of the imperfective писать?
We use the perfective написать because the focus is on successfully completing the action and getting a result (a fully filled-out form). If you used писать, it would focus purely on the ongoing process of writing.
Why does it say по-русски with a hyphen instead of using the adjective русский?
по-русски is an adverb meaning 'in Russian' or 'in the Russian way'. When you talk about speaking, writing, or understanding a language, Russian uses the prefix по- and the suffix -и attached to the adjective root, always joined by a hyphen. You need an adverb here to describe how the action is done, rather than an adjective describing a noun.
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