Breakdown of Сначала нужно сушить изделие, а потом покрывать его глазурью.
он
he / it (for a masculine noun) / it (for a neuter noun)
а
and (contrastive)
сначала
first
потом
then
нужно
it is necessary
покрывать
to coat
глазурь
the glaze (f)
сушить
to dry
изделие
the product
Questions & Answers about Сначала нужно сушить изделие, а потом покрывать его глазурью.
Why are the verbs сушить and покрывать in the imperfective aspect here?
When giving general instructions, rules, or describing a standard process, Russian uses the imperfective aspect. Because this describes how the product is generally made rather than a one-time specific action, we use the imperfective сушить (to dry) and покрывать (to coat) after нужно.
Could I use во-первых instead of сначала?
No, because во-первых means "firstly" and is only used to list arguments or points in a discussion. Сначала means "first" in a chronological sequence of events, which is exactly what we need for a step-by-step physical process.
Why do we use the conjunction а before потом instead of just и?
While и потом is possible, а потом is the standard way to emphasize a transition between sequential actions in Russian. The conjunction а highlights the shift from the first distinct phase (drying) to the next distinct phase (coating).
Why does the word глазурь change to глазурью?
It is in the instrumental case because it is the material used to perform the action. The verb покрывать (to coat or cover) requires the accusative case for the thing being covered (его) and the instrumental case for the material it is covered with (глазурью). Since глазурь is a feminine noun ending in a soft sign, its instrumental ending is -ью.
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