Breakdown of Трудно принимать решения быстро.
быстро
fast, quickly
принимать решение
to make a decision
трудно
it is hard, difficult
Questions & Answers about Трудно принимать решения быстро.
Why use the phrase принимать решения instead of just the verb решать?
Принимать решение is a formal analytical predicate (also called a light verb construction). It substitutes the simple verb решать (to decide) with a noun-verb combination (to make a decision). This makes the language sound slightly more formal, professional, or weighty, much like choosing 'to make a decision' over 'to decide' in English.
Why is the verb принимать (to take/accept) used here instead of a verb meaning 'to make'?
Unlike English where you 'make' a decision, Russian requires the verb принимать (to take or to accept) for this specific collocation. Saying делать решение is grammatically incorrect. When learning these formal noun-verb predicates, you just have to memorize which specific 'light verb' pairs with the noun.
Why is принимать in the imperfective aspect here? Could we use the perfective принять?
You could use the perfective принять, but it would change the meaning. Using the imperfective принимать after трудно makes this a general statement: 'the ongoing process of making decisions quickly is generally hard.' Using the perfective принять would mean 'it is hard to make these specific decisions quickly' in an isolated, one-time situation.
Does putting быстро at the very end of the sentence change the tone?
Yes, Russian usually places the most important new information (the logical stress) at the end of the sentence. By putting быстро last, the speaker emphasizes that the speed is the difficult part. If you said Трудно быстро принимать решения, the stress shifts back to the act of making the decisions themselves.
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