Breakdown of Чтобы выжить, воинам нужно отступить, но им уже не победить.
не
not
они
they
уже
already
но
but
нужно
it is necessary
чтобы
in order to
выжить
to survive
победить
to defeat / to win
воин
warrior
отступить
to retreat
Questions & Answers about Чтобы выжить, воинам нужно отступить, но им уже не победить.
How does им уже не победить mean 'it is impossible for them to win anymore' without a word for 'impossible'?
This sentence uses an independent infinitive clause. When you combine a logical subject in the dative case (им), the negative particle не, and a perfective infinitive (победить), it creates a strong sense of impossibility or inevitable failure. It essentially means 'there is no way for them to win' or 'they are not fated to win.'
Why does the clause of impossibility use the perfective verb победить? Could we use the imperfective побеждать?
The construction for absolute impossibility requires the perfective aspect. If you used the imperfective не побеждать, the meaning would shift from impossibility to a strong command or instruction not to do it, meaning 'they must not win' or 'they are not supposed to win.'
Why are both воинам and им in the dative case?
Both clauses rely on impersonal constructions where the doer (the logical subject) must be in the dative case. In the first part, воинам (to the warriors) is the dative subject required by the state word нужно. In the second part, им (to them) is the dative subject required by the independent infinitive clause of impossibility.
How does уже не translate to 'anymore'?
While уже on its own means 'already,' combining it with a negative particle like не creates the literal meaning of 'already not.' In natural English, this combination is always translated as 'not anymore' or 'no longer.'
Why doesn't the first part of the sentence, Чтобы выжить, state who is surviving?
When a чтобы purpose clause uses an infinitive, it automatically shares its subject with the main clause. Since the logical subject of the following clause is воинам, it is already understood that the warriors are the ones who need to survive.
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