Russian Β· Chapter 4 Β· Lesson 14 Β· Grammar primer
The instrumental: by, with, as
The tool, the company and the profession all take one ending where English uses three constructions.
The short version
A tool takes no preposition at all
The thing you do something with goes into the bare instrumental: ΠΊΠ»ΡΡΠΎΠΌ, with a key. Adding Ρ changes the meaning to accompaniment, so s nozhom describes a man carrying a knife, not one using it. English with covers both ideas; Russian keeps them apart.
On otkryl dver klyuchom.
Was a doctor needs the instrumental
In the present a profession stays in the nominative, because Π±ΡΡΡ has vanished: on vrach. Bring Π±ΡΡΡ back in the past or future, or use ΡΡΠ°ΡΡ or ΡΠ°Π±ΠΎΡΠ°ΡΡ, and the role moves into the instrumental. It marks a hat someone wears for a time.
On byl vrachom.
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