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Раньше обжиг делали по-старому.

Раньше обжиг делали по-старому.
Previously, firing was done the old way.
From Lesson 419:Adverbs of manner (по-...-ому)·Russian

Breakdown of Раньше обжиг делали по-старому.

делать
to do
раньше
earlier
по-старому
in the old way
обжиг
the firing

Questions & Answers about Раньше обжиг делали по-старому.

How does the word по-старому work here?
This is an adverb of manner meaning "in the old way". It is formed from the adjective старый (old). To make this kind of adverb, you add the prefix по-, use the dative case ending for masculine/neuter adjectives (-ому or -ему), and connect them with a hyphen.
What is the difference between saying по-старому and a standard adverb?
Standard adverbs describe how an action is done in a general sense. The по- ... -ому pattern specifically means doing something "in the manner of" or "in the style of" the base adjective. So по-старому emphasizes doing something the exact way it used to be done, contrasting it with a new method.
Why is the verb делали in the plural if the English translation uses the passive voice?
Russian frequently uses the third-person plural past tense (делали) without a subject pronoun to express that an unspecified group did the action. It translates very naturally into English as the passive voice. Instead of an awkward "they used to do the firing", we say "firing was done".
Is the word обжиг (firing) the subject of the sentence?
No, it is the direct object of the verb делали. Because обжиг is a masculine inanimate noun, its accusative form looks exactly like its nominative form. The unspecified "they" from the previous answer is the implied subject.

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