Breakdown of Не успели они включить утюг, как погас свет.
не
not
они
they
свет
light
успеть
to manage
утюг
iron (for clothes)
как
than (in 'no sooner ... than')
погаснуть
to go out
включить
to turn on, switch on
Questions & Answers about Не успели они включить утюг, как погас свет.
How does the 'no sooner... than' construction work in this sentence?
The phrase не успел (conjugated here for the subject они) followed by a perfective infinitive (включить) and the conjunction как is the standard way to say 'no sooner had one thing happened than another thing happened'. It literally translates to 'They didn't manage to turn on the iron, when the light went out.'
Why is the perfective infinitive включить used here?
The verb успеть (to manage or have time to do something) almost always takes a perfective infinitive. This is because it focuses on successfully achieving a single, specific result, rather than an ongoing process.
The English translation says 'plugged in', but doesn't включить usually mean 'turn on'?
Yes, it does. In Russian, включить is commonly used for both 'turning on' and 'plugging in' electrical appliances. Unless the physical act of inserting the plug into the wall socket is the specific focus of the story, Russians just say включить.
Why is the subject свет placed after the verb погас?
Russian uses word order to show emphasis, often placing the newest or most crucial information at the very end of a clause. Putting свет after the verb emphasizes the sudden, unexpected nature of the power going out as the interrupting event.
Why doesn't the masculine past tense verb погас end in -л?
The infinitive is погаснуть (to go out or extinguish). Many verbs ending in -нуть that describe a change of state drop the -ну- suffix and the standard -л ending in the masculine past tense. However, they do keep the -л- in other forms, such as the feminine (погасла) and plural (погасли).
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