Breakdown of Фермеры засеяли три десятых пастбища ради урожая.
три
three
десятый
tenth
фермер
farmer
урожай
harvest
ради
for the sake of
засеять
to sow (an area, perfective)
пастбище
pasture
Questions & Answers about Фермеры засеяли три десятых пастбища ради урожая.
Why does the fraction use the feminine number три when the noun it measures, пастбище, is neuter?
In Russian fractions, the implied word is always часть (part), which is feminine. So, you are literally saying 'three feminine parts'. The gender of the actual object being divided, пастбище, does not change the gender of the fraction itself.
Why is the denominator десятых in the Genitive plural rather than Genitive singular?
The numerator три dictates the case of the denominator. For numbers 2, 3, and 4, the following adjective or ordinal number, like десятых, takes the Genitive plural. If it were one tenth, it would be одна десятая in the Nominative feminine.
Why is пастбища in the Genitive singular here?
The fraction три десятых acts as a quantity word. Just like with words like много (a lot) or половина (half), the noun that follows it must be in the Genitive case to mean 'of the pasture'. Since they sowed part of one single pasture, it is Genitive singular.
What does the prefix in the perfective verb засеяли add to the basic verb сеяли?
The prefix за- here indicates covering an entire surface or area with something. While сеять just means the general action of sowing seeds, засеять means to plant a specific area completely with seeds.
What is the difference between using ради and для in this context?
Both take the Genitive case and mean 'for', but ради specifically means 'for the sake of' or 'for the benefit of'. It strongly emphasizes the farmers' motivation or ultimate goal of achieving the harvest, whereas для would just state a general purpose.
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