Breakdown of Мама включала плиту и утюг, но сейчас они холодные.
и
and
мама
mom
они
they
холодный
cold
сейчас
now
но
but
включать
to turn on (imperfective)
утюг
iron (for clothes)
плита
stove
Questions & Answers about Мама включала плиту и утюг, но сейчас они холодные.
Why is включала (imperfective) used here instead of включила (perfective), since Mom definitely finished turning them on?
This is the annulled result function of the imperfective aspect. Mom successfully turned on the stove and the iron, but the second half of the sentence (но сейчас они холодные) tells us that the result of that action is no longer active. Because the state was reversed (they are no longer on or hot), Russian uses the imperfective past to show that the action happened but its result did not last.
What if we did not have the second part of the sentence (но сейчас они холодные)? Would we still use включала?
You could, but the meaning would change. Without the context of the reversed result, using the imperfective включала usually sounds like a repeated action in the past (Mom used to turn them on). To simply report a single completed action of turning them on without implying the result was undone, you would use the perfective включила.
Why does плиту change to end in -у, while утюг does not change its ending at all?
Both words are in the accusative case because they are the direct objects of включала. Плита is a feminine noun ending in -а, so its accusative ending changes to -у. Утюг is a masculine inanimate noun, so its accusative form remains identical to its nominative dictionary form.
Does включать only mean to plug something into an electrical socket?
It originally implies making an electrical connection, but it has become the universal verb for turning on any household appliance, device, or system, whether it runs on electricity, gas, or battery. You would use it for a gas stove just as much as an electric iron.
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