Breakdown of Если корпорация меняет стратегию, то она сохраняет лидерство.
она
she / it (for a feminine noun)
если
if
то
then (in that case)
менять
to change, to exchange
сохранять
to preserve
корпорация
corporation
лидерство
leadership (position or state of being a leader)
стратегия
strategy
Questions & Answers about Если корпорация меняет стратегию, то она сохраняет лидерство.
Since this lesson is about control, shouldn't 'leadership' involve the instrumental case?
The instrumental case of control is triggered by specific verbs (like управлять or владеть). The verb here is сохранять (to keep/preserve). This is a regular transitive verb, so its direct object (лидерство) must take the accusative case, regardless of the fact that the word itself relates to power or control.
What is the function of то in this sentence?
It acts as the 'then' in the 'If... then...' structure (Если... то...). While English often drops the word 'then' in conditional sentences, Russian strongly prefers using то to clearly connect the condition and the result, especially in formal statements.
Could we reverse the order of the clauses in Russian?
Yes, but you would have to drop то. You can say Она сохраняет лидерство, если корпорация меняет стратегию. The word то is strictly used to introduce the result clause only when the Если clause comes first.
Why use the present tense imperfective verbs (меняет, сохраняет) instead of the future tense?
This sentence expresses a general business rule or absolute truth (often called a 'zero conditional'). In Russian, general conditions that are always true are expressed using the imperfective aspect in the present tense for both halves of the sentence.
Learn Если корпорация меняет стратегию, то она сохраняет лидерство and more in Russian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free