Breakdown of Обе призмы преломляют свет с помощью этого оптического стекла, причём они создают яркий спектр.
они
they
этот
this [f: эта, n: это]
свет
light
создавать
to create
яркий
bright
обе
both (f)
стекло
glass (material)
причём
moreover
призма
the prism
спектр
the spectrum
с помощью
with the help of
оптический
optical
преломлять
to refract
Questions & Answers about Обе призмы преломляют свет с помощью этого оптического стекла, причём они создают яркий спектр.
Why do we use с помощью here instead of just putting the glass in the instrumental case (этим оптическим стеклом)?
While the bare instrumental case often shows the tool used to do something, с помощью (with the help of / by means of) is a compound preposition that sounds more formal, technical, or explicit. Since we are describing a scientific process, с помощью fits the technical register perfectly. Remember that it must always be followed by the genitive case, which is why we see этого оптического стекла.
What exactly does причём add to the sentence that a simple и would not?
The conjunction причём translates roughly to 'moreover', 'and what is more', or 'and at the same time'. It does not just connect two equal facts; it emphasizes that the second clause adds significant, complementary, or even slightly surprising information to the first one. A simple и would just list two facts without showing this special relationship.
Why is the word for 'both' обе instead of оба, and why is призмы in that specific form?
The noun призма is feminine. The word for 'both' has a special feminine form, обе (for masculine and neuter, you would use оба). Just like the numbers 2, 3, and 4 in the nominative case, обе requires the following noun to be in the genitive singular. So, призма becomes призмы.
Is there a way to break down the verb преломляют to understand its meaning better?
Yes! The root here is related to ломать (to break). The prefix пре- often means 'across', 'over', or a change of state (similar to пере-). So, to refract light in Russian is literally to break it across or alter its path.
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