Breakdown of Игрок берёт кий, чтобы сделать точный удар.
сделать
to do (perfective) / to make (perfective)
брать
to take (imperfective)
чтобы
in order to
игрок
player
точный
exact, precise
кий
cue
удар
stroke (hit, impact)
Questions & Answers about Игрок берёт кий, чтобы сделать точный удар.
Why do we use the infinitive сделать after чтобы here?
Because the subject of the main clause (Игрок) is the exact same actor who will perform the action in the subordinate clause. When the same person is performing both actions, Russian uses чтобы followed directly by an infinitive.
Why is сделать perfective here while the main verb берёт is imperfective?
The verb берёт (takes) is imperfective because it describes a present-tense fact or a general, repeated action. The infinitive сделать is perfective because the player's specific goal is the successful, one-time completion of a result: a precise stroke.
How would this sentence look if we applied this lesson's structure, без того, чтобы не?
If we wanted to say 'The player never takes the cue without making a precise stroke,' we would write: Игрок не берёт кий без того, чтобы не сделать точный удар. Notice that we use the negative main verb alongside the negative clause (чтобы не) to express that one action inevitably accompanies the other.
Why doesn't the ending of the noun кий change here, since it is the direct object being taken?
The word кий (billiard cue) is indeed in the accusative case because it is the direct object of the action. However, since it is a masculine inanimate noun, its accusative form looks exactly identical to its nominative dictionary form.
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