Breakdown of По крайней мере, никто не болел.
никто
nobody
болеть
to hurt, to ache; to be ill
по крайней мере
at least
Questions & Answers about По крайней мере, никто не болел.
What is the literal translation of the phrase по крайней мере?
It literally translates to 'by the extreme measure'. The word крайней is the feminine prepositional form of крайний (extreme or last), and мере is the prepositional form of мера (measure). Together, they form the standard Russian expression for 'at least'.
Why do we use the imperfective verb болел here instead of the perfective заболел?
The imperfective болел is used because it describes a state or an ongoing condition ('was ill'). If you used the perfective заболел, the meaning would change to a completed action or a sudden change of state, meaning 'got sick' or 'fell ill'.
Why are both никто and не used in this sentence?
Russian grammar strictly requires a double negative. Whenever you use a negative pronoun like никто (nobody) or a negative adverb like никогда (never), you must also place the negative particle не right before the verb.
Is the comma after По крайней мере strictly necessary?
Yes. In Russian punctuation, introductory phrases that structure a thought or express an attitude (like по крайней мере, к счастью, or например) are almost always set off by commas from the rest of the sentence.
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