Svetlana Flemming - Colloquial Russian - The Next Step in Language Learning

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It is possible for the by to precede the verb:

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q by podu´mal

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I should think

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The subjunctive can be used to express desirability:

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mne xoteĺos; by

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I would like / I would have liked

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vy by mne skazaĺi

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you should have told me

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q powe¨l by

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I would like to go / I would have gone

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\´to by

ĺo by otli´hno

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that would be excellent

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Conditional clauses

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Clauses introduced by

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eśli ‘if’ fall into two types:

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1. If the condition is capable of being fulfilled the subjunctive is not 1

used. Where the verb in the main clause is in the future then the verb 2

in the clause introduced by

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eśli will also be in the future, unlike in

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English, where it would be in the present:

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My ne pojde¨m, eśli pojde¨t do'd;.

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We won’t go if it rains.

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It is, of course, possible to find tenses other than the future after 9

esli:

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1

Esli te´be ne nra´vitsq [

´ bka, kupińo´vu[.

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If you don’t like the skirt buy a new one.

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Russian society

2. Where a condition is hypothetical the subjunctive mood is used in both the main clause and in the conditional clause. In this case the conditional clause is introduced by eśli by followed by the past tense. Remember that by is used only with the past tense: Esli by ne´ bylo kriźisa, to ne sokratiĺos; by

koli´hestvo rabo´hix mest.

If there had been no crisis, then the number of jobs would not have declined.

The use of to, ‘then’, to introduce the main clause in this kind of sentence is quite common.

It is possible for the main clause to precede the esli clause: Koli´hestvo rabo´hix mest ne sokratiĺos; by, eśli by ne´

bylo kriźisa.

Exercise 5

Create single sentences out of two simple sentences using the future tense.

Example: U menq´ deń;gi. Q e´du za graniću. – Esli u menq´ bu´dut deń;gi, (to) q poe´du za graniću.

1 Le´to 'aŕkoe. My 'ive¨m na da´he.

2 Q sda[´ matema´tiku. Q postupa´[ v texni´heskij universite´t.

3 Rossi´jskie doro´gi uluhwa´[tsq. V Rossi´[ eźdit mno´go turiśtov.

4 U nego´ xoro´waq zarpla´ta. On pokupaét kvartiŕu v ceńtre.

5 U menqést; she¨t v bańke. Q vkla´dyva[ kapitaĺ v ceńnye buma´gi.

6 Ona brosaét kuri´t;, Ee¨ zdoro´v;e lu´hwe.

7 Rossi´jskie gaze´ty nezaviśimye. Oni´

publiku´[t vs[

informaći[.

8 Na festivaĺe pokaźany rossi´jskie fiĺ;my. Zri´teli zna´[t, kak razvivaétsq kino´ v Rossií.

9 U menqést; vre´mq. Q e´du v kruiź po Voĺge.

Rossijskoe obwestvo

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Exercise 6

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Replace the future tense in the following sentences with the subjunc-5

tive.

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Example: Esli u menq´ bu´det vre´mq, (to) q pojdu´

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v kino´. – Esli by u menq´ by

ĺo vre´mq, (to)

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q powe¨l by (powla´ by) v kino´.

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1 Esli \kono´mika zarabo´taet, to sre´dnij klass obqza´tel;no 1

uveli´hitsq. 2 Esli on okońhit universite´t, u nego´ bu´det xoro´waq 2

rabo´ta. 3 Esli ne bu´det defoĺta v \´tom godu´, rossi´jskij rubl; 3

stańet siĺ;nym. 4 Esli ne bu´det provedenaŕefoŕma obrazovańiq, 4

uŕoven; obrazovańiq upade¨t. 5 Esli bu´det vvedena´

pla´ta za

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obrazovańie, postrada´[t mno´gie l[