Breakdown of По мере того как мальки растут, их разведение становится сложным.
их
their
сложный
difficult, complex
тот
that
расти
to grow
Questions & Answers about По мере того как мальки растут, их разведение становится сложным.
How does the phrase по мере того как work in this sentence?
По мере того как is a compound conjunction meaning "as" or "in proportion to." It connects two continuous actions happening simultaneously, emphasizing that as one process progresses (the fry growing), another changes alongside it (breeding becoming complicated).
Why is сложным in the instrumental case rather than the nominative сложное?
The verb становится (becomes) requires the noun or adjective that follows it to be in the instrumental case. Since разведение is neuter, the adjective сложный takes the neuter instrumental ending -ым, becoming сложным.
What is the singular form of мальки (fry), and why does the spelling change?
The singular form is малёк. When it becomes plural, the vowel ё disappears (it is a "fugitive vowel"). The soft sign ь is inserted to keep the л soft before the consonant к, giving us мальки.
Could we just use когда (when) instead of по мере того как?
You could use когда, but you would lose the specific nuance of a gradual, proportional change. По мере того как stresses the step-by-step evolution: the bigger the fry get, the harder they are to breed.