Breakdown of Мы послали курьера на склад за запчастями и инструкцией.
и
and
мы
we
на
on, at / by (transport) / to (a place) / to (in answer to)
курьер
courier
склад
warehouse
послать
to send
за
for (to fetch, go get)
запчасть
spare part
инструкция
manual
Questions & Answers about Мы послали курьера на склад за запчастями и инструкцией.
Why do we use за запчастями instead of для запчастей if both can translate as 'for the spare parts'?
When you are going somewhere to fetch, retrieve, or pick up something (or someone), Russian uses за + the Instrumental case. You use для + Genitive when something is intended for someone's use or benefit. Since the courier is going to the warehouse to physically bring back the parts, за is the correct preposition here.
What is the base form of запчастями, and why does it have this Instrumental plural ending?
The nominative singular is запчасть (a feminine word ending in a soft sign, which is short for запасная часть). The plural is запчасти. The Instrumental plural ending for most nouns is -ами or -ями, which gives us запчастями.
Why did we use на склад instead of в склад?
The word склад (warehouse or storage) is one of those specific locations in Russian that traditionally takes the preposition на rather than в for both location (where? на складе) and direction (where to? на склад). Because the courier is moving toward it, we use the Accusative case form.
Why does инструкцией end in -ей rather than -ой?
The noun инструкция (manual or instruction) ends in -ия. Feminine nouns ending in -я take -ей (or -ёй if the ending is stressed) in the Instrumental singular. Because the stress falls on the root (инстру́кция), the unstressed ending becomes -ей, resulting in инструкцией.
Could we use the verb отправили instead of послали in this sentence?
Yes, отправили and послали are virtually interchangeable here. Послать can sometimes sound a bit more colloquial or direct, while отправить (to dispatch or send off) is very standard for sending personnel, packages, or messages. Both perfectly translate to 'sent' in this context.
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