Breakdown of По мере того как проходит время, старый трос должен быть заменён.
старый
old
время
time
быть
to be
должен
must, have to (должен, должна, должны)
проходить
to pass
заменить
to substitute (pf)
по мере того как
as
трос
the cable
Questions & Answers about По мере того как проходит время, старый трос должен быть заменён.
How does the phrase должен быть заменён work here?
This is the passive infinitive construction you are currently studying. The modal word должен (must) agrees with the masculine singular subject старый трос. It is followed by the infinitive быть (to be) and the short past passive participle заменён (replaced), which also agrees with the masculine singular subject. Because it is formed from a perfective verb, it emphasizes the completed result of the action.
По мере того как seems like a lot of words just to say 'As'. How exactly does this phrase break down?
This is a common compound conjunction at the B2 level. It literally translates to 'by the measure of that how', but it smoothly means 'as', 'as long as', or 'in proportion as'. It is used specifically to show that two processes are happening simultaneously or that one changes progressively in response to the other.
Why is the word order проходит время (passes time) instead of время проходит?
In Russian, putting the verb before the subject often highlights the action or the existence of the subject rather than the subject itself. Here, the focus is on the passing of time as a background process, making проходит время sound much more natural in this dependent clause than the standard English subject-verb order.
Why use the short form заменён instead of the long form заменённый?
In passive predicate constructions like this one, the short form of the participle acts as the main verb of the clause. Long form participles are mostly used as adjectives directly attached to a noun (like 'the replaced cable'). After быть in this type of passive sentence, you will always use the short form to state that something 'is done' or 'must be done'.
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