Breakdown of Уровень океана постепенно повышается?
океан
ocean
уровень
level
постепенно
gradually
повышаться
to rise / increase
Questions & Answers about Уровень океана постепенно повышается?
How could I rephrase this sentence to use the "всё + comparative" structure from this lesson, like "getting higher and higher"?
You could replace the verb with становится (is becoming) and use всё выше (higher and higher): Уровень океана становится всё выше? If you want to keep the verb повышается (is rising), you could describe how it is rising, such as "faster and faster": Уровень океана повышается всё быстрее?
Why is the reflexive -ся ending required on повышается?
The -ся ending shows that the action is happening to the subject itself (the level is rising). Without it, повышать requires a direct object, meaning "to raise" or "to increase" something else, such as a company raising its prices.
Is повышается related to the word for "high"?
Yes, the root relates to высокий (high) and выше (higher). The verb повышаться essentially means "to make itself higher". The exact opposite, meaning "to fall" or "to decrease", is понижаться, which comes from низкий (low).
Why is океана in the genitive case rather than being an adjective?
Because it literally translates to "the level of the ocean". When English uses a noun as an adjective like this (ocean level, water level, sea level), Russian almost always links them by putting the second noun in the genitive case, just like the common phrase уровень моря (sea level).
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