Breakdown of Нельзя проносить жидкости, за исключением лекарств.
нельзя
one must not
лекарство
medicine
жидкость
liquid
за исключением
with the exception of
проносить
to bring through
Questions & Answers about Нельзя проносить жидкости, за исключением лекарств.
How does за исключением affect the word for medicines?
The compound preposition за исключением (with the exception of) always requires the following noun to be in the Genitive case. Here, the neuter noun лекарство (medicine) becomes лекарств in the Genitive plural, dropping its final -о.
Why use the imperfective verb проносить here instead of the perfective пронести?
When нельзя is followed by an imperfective verb, it means an action is forbidden by rules or law. If we used the perfective пронести, it would mean physical impossibility (for example, 'it is impossible to physically get them through'). Since this sentence states a security rule, the imperfective is required.
What does the prefix про- add to the verb носить (to carry)?
The prefix про- often indicates movement through or past a boundary. In this context, проносить specifically refers to carrying items past a checkpoint, such as at airport security.
Is жидкости in the Genitive case here because of the negative word нельзя?
No, it is actually in the Accusative plural because it is the direct object of проносить. For inanimate nouns like жидкость (liquid), the Accusative plural is identical to the Nominative plural. While Russian sometimes uses the Genitive for objects in negative sentences, general rules with нельзя usually just take the standard Accusative.
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