Breakdown of Это остров, к которому в течение недели плыло наше судно.
это
this / it is
наш
our
неделя
week
к
towards, to
остров
island
который
which / who / that (relative pronoun)
плыть
to swim, to sail (one direction)
в течение
during (a period of time)
судно
vessel
Questions & Answers about Это остров, к которому в течение недели плыло наше судно.
Why does the preposition phrase в течение end with -е instead of -и?
As a fixed compound preposition meaning "during" or "over the course of," в течение always ends in -е. It only ends in -и (в течении) when you are talking about being literally inside a physical current of water in the Prepositional case.
Which case follows в течение in this sentence?
Derivative prepositions of duration like в течение and в продолжение always take the Genitive case. That is why the feminine noun неделя (week) changes to недели.
Why is the relative pronoun которому in the Dative case?
It is governed by the preposition к (toward/to), which requires the Dative case. Because the ship was sailing toward the island, the relative pronoun referring back to the island takes the same preposition and case: к которому.
Why use the imperfective verb плыло here instead of a perfective verb?
The phrase в течение недели specifically highlights the ongoing duration or process of the action. When you focus on how long a continuous action took in the past rather than its completion, you need the imperfective aspect. Since the ship was moving in one specific direction (toward the island), the unidirectional imperfective verb плыло is used.
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