Breakdown of Если Анна обладает талантом, то она добьётся успеха.
она
she / it (for a feminine noun)
Анна
Anna
если
if
то
then (in that case)
успех
success
добиться
to achieve (pf)
обладать
to possess
талант
talent
Questions & Answers about Если Анна обладает талантом, то она добьётся успеха.
Why is талантом in the Instrumental case here?
The verb обладать (to possess or have) requires its object to be in the Instrumental case, not the Accusative. This is a common pattern for Russian verbs dealing with possession, control, or management, similar to what you've seen with владеть or руководить.
I would have expected the Accusative for the word success. Why is it успеха (Genitive)?
The verb добиться (to achieve or reach) always governs the Genitive case. It structurally implies reaching or striving for something. It is a common stumbling block, but you just have to memorize that добиться takes the Genitive rather than a direct Accusative object.
Do we have to use то in the second half of the sentence?
It is not strictly mandatory, but it is very natural and expected in Russian. When a sentence starts with Если (If), pairing it with то (then) clearly anchors the second clause and emphasizes the cause-and-effect relationship.
Why is обладает in the present tense while добьётся is in the future tense?
Russian conditional sentences use tenses strictly based on when the action actually happens. Anna possesses the talent right now (present imperfective обладает), and because of this ongoing state, she will achieve a result in the future (future perfective добьётся).
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