Breakdown of По возвращении из командировки он должен немедленно приступить к работе.
он
he / it (for a masculine noun) / it (for a neuter noun)
работа
work, job
должен
must, have to (должен, должна, должны)
из
out of
командировка
business trip
к
towards, to
по
upon / after (formal, e.g., upon arrival)
возвращение
the return
немедленно
immediately (without delay)
приступить
to proceed
Questions & Answers about По возвращении из командировки он должен немедленно приступить к работе.
Why is it возвращении and not возвращению? Isn't по usually followed by the Dative case?
While по usually takes the Dative case (like in гулять по городу), in formal contexts meaning 'upon' or 'immediately after,' it takes the Prepositional case. Since возвращение (return) is a neuter noun ending in -ие, its Prepositional case ending is -ии. This gives us по возвращении (upon return).
Can I use после возвращения instead of по возвращении here?
Yes, после возвращения (Genitive case) means exactly the same thing and is much more common in everyday speech. По возвращении is a formal, slightly bureaucratic construction, which is why it fits perfectly here with the professional context of a business trip and official duties.
Why do we use из командировки rather than с командировки?
The choice of preposition for returning 'from' somewhere depends on what you use for going 'to' that place. Because you go в командировку (using в), you must return из it. If you were returning from a destination that takes на (like на работу), you would use с (e.g., с работы).
Why use приступить к instead of just saying начать работу?
Приступить к (which requires the Dative case, giving us к работе) means 'to proceed to' or 'to set about' doing something. It sounds more professional and decisive than simply начать (to start). It emphasizes the action of getting down to a specific task, matching the strict, official tone of the sentence.
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