Breakdown of Нам нечего терять, поэтому не стоит принимать решения поспешно.
не
not
нам
to us
поэтому
so (therefore)
терять
to lose
решение
decision
нечего
nothing (there is nothing to...)
принимать
to accept (impf) / to take (part in)
стоит
it is worth (doing)
поспешно
hastily
принимать решение
to make a decision
Questions & Answers about Нам нечего терять, поэтому не стоит принимать решения поспешно.
Why is нечего used here instead of ничего?
When stating that there is "nothing to do" or "nowhere to go", Russian uses не- words (like нечего or некуда) plus an infinitive, rather than ничего. The person who has nothing to lose is put in the dative case, which is why the sentence starts with Нам.
What is the exact nuance of не стоит in this sentence?
The impersonal expression не стоит literally means "it is not worth it". In this context, it functions as a mild recommendation or advice, meaning "we shouldn't" or "there is no point in". It is softer and less formal than не следует (one ought not to).
Why is the imperfective verb принимать used after не стоит?
When advising against doing something, Russian almost always uses the imperfective aspect. Even though making a decision might feel like a completed result (which would normally take the perfective принять), the grammatical rule of "negative advice takes the imperfective" overrides that here.
Why do Russians use принимать for "making" decisions?
In Russian, you do not "make" or "do" a decision. The standard phrase is принимать решение (imperfective) or принять решение (perfective), which literally translates to "to accept a decision".
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