Breakdown of Когда спрос снизился, наш главный показатель стал в четыре раза ниже.
наш
our (наш, наша, наше)
четыре
four
когда
when
раз
time, occasion
Questions & Answers about Когда спрос снизился, наш главный показатель стал в четыре раза ниже.
Why is it раза instead of раз in the phrase в четыре раза ниже?
The structure for "X times [comparative]" is в + Accusative number + раз/раза. Because the word раз is inanimate, the accusative form of "four" is just четыре. Following standard Russian number rules, the numbers 2, 3, and 4 require the following noun to be in the genitive singular. Therefore, раз becomes раза. If it were five times lower, it would be в пять раз ниже, using the genitive plural.
Why do we use the reflexive verb снизился instead of just снизил?
The non-reflexive verb снизить is transitive, meaning an active agent lowers a direct object (e.g., a company lowers prices). Adding the -ся ending makes it intransitive. Here, the demand (спрос) decreased on its own, so we need the reflexive form снизился to show that the subject simply underwent a change in state.
Does the word показатель (indicator) come from the verb показать (to show)?
Yes! Показать means "to show," and the suffix -тель is often used to create nouns that perform an action (similar to "-er" or "-or" in English). So, a показатель is literally "something that shows" a result—an indicator, metric, or index.
Could we use меньше (smaller/less) instead of (lower) in this sentence?