Breakdown of Большинство мигрантов приехали сюда, потому что дома высокая безработица.
дома
at home
потому что
because
высокий
tall / high (of a level or amount)
большинство
majority
приехать
to arrive (by transport, pf)
сюда
here, to here
мигрант
migrant
безработица
unemployment
Questions & Answers about Большинство мигрантов приехали сюда, потому что дома высокая безработица.
Why is the verb приехали in the plural, when the subject is the neuter singular word большинство?
With collective nouns like большинство (majority), you can often use either a neuter singular or a plural verb. Here, приехали is plural because the dependent noun (мигрантов) is plural and animate (they are people). When a collective noun refers to living things actively performing an action, Russian strongly prefers the plural verb.
Would it be grammatically wrong to say Большинство мигрантов приехало?
It wouldn't be strictly wrong, as the neuter singular (приехало) is the default grammatical agreement for большинство. However, it sounds more formal and less natural here. The plural приехали emphasizes the individual people rather than treating them as a single faceless mass.
Why do we use сюда instead of здесь for 'here'?
The word сюда indicates direction of motion ('to here'), which matches the verb of motion приехали (arrived). The word здесь indicates static location ('in this place') and would be incorrect because it answers 'where?' rather than 'to where?'.
How does the word безработица break down?
It comes from the prefix без- (without) and the root работ- (work), combined with the noun suffix -ица. Literally, it means the state of being without work, which translates to 'unemployment'.
Why is дома translated as 'at home' rather than 'houses'?
While дома is the plural of дом (houses) and the singular genitive (of a house), here it acts as a fixed adverb meaning 'at home'. You can tell from the context, as 'because houses high unemployment' wouldn't make sense.
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