Question 1

Why does в продолжение end in -е? Wouldn't "in the continuation" be in the Prepositional case ending in -и?

Accepted Answer

When в продолжение is used as a compound preposition of time meaning "throughout" or "during", it is a fixed form that always ends in -е. If you were talking about a literal continuation or sequel, like "in the sequel of the movie", it would be a regular noun in the Prepositional case: в продолжении фильма.

Question 2

Can I swap в продолжение with в течение in this sentence?

Accepted Answer

Yes, absolutely. Both mean "during" or "in the course of," both require the Genitive case (which is why we see месяца), and both always end in -е. В течение is slightly more common in everyday speech, while в продолжение can sound a bit more literary.

Question 3

Since the sailing lasted for a whole month, why use the unidirectional verb of motion плыло instead of the multidirectional плавало?

Accepted Answer

Even though the action took a long time, the vessel was moving in a single, continuous direction toward a specific destination (к горизонту). Multidirectional verbs like плавать are used for aimless movement, round trips, or general ability, none of which apply to this steady, one-way journey.

Question 4

Could we use a perfective verb here to show the action is completed in the past?

Accepted Answer

No, you need the imperfective aspect (плыло) here. The preposition в продолжение specifically highlights the ongoing duration or process of an action. Perfective verbs focus on results or completion, so they clash with phrases emphasizing how long an ongoing process took.

В продолжение месяца судно плыло к горизонту.

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