# Почему ты ко мне никогда не зайдешь?



## Wasmachien

Hello,

I was wondering how I should understand the question "Почему ты ко мне никогда не зайдешь?". Is the speaker talking about one specific time the other person should come to him? Or is just a general complaint, like 'Why do you never visit me?' In this case, why isn't the imperfective form used instead? Or is it comparable to English 'Why won't you ever come to me? (Sorry, no more context.)

Thanks


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## rusita preciosa

It means "why do you never visit me?'.

Why imperfective? I'm not sure, to me the meaning is exactly the same, but *не зайдешь *sounds a bit more colloquial than *не **заходишь*.


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## gvozd

It means, as you have surmised, 'why do you never visit me'. There is not a rule, I presume, which makes it compulsory to use imperfective forms in such cases. You can also say "Почему ты ко мне никогда не заходишь?" (imperfective). Both versions are OK.


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## Explorer41

The shade of meaning is that the perfective version talks about multiple times scattered (and each time he does not visit you), whereas the imperfective version talks about one long period of time, during which he does not visit you. Yes, I like more your second translation, though I'm not sure in my English


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## morzh

In my experience, there is a slight difference in usage.

"Не зайдешь" (не позвонишь) and other perfect forms are used often in reproachful speech / characteristic of a person. It is not typically used otherwise.

Examples:

Ну что тъi за человек - никогда не зайдешь, не позвонишь.
Он жадина - никогда ни конфетой не угостит, ни игрушкой не поделится.

Imperfect forms are also suited for that, but, besides, they are used simply to describe on-going recurring action (or rather the lack of such actions), а habitual behavior:

Он уже давно к нам не заходит.
Она мне никогда не писала.


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## MIDAV

Wasmachien said:


> "Почему ты ко мне никогда не зайдешь?"


If my Russian girl friend told me that, I would think she had gone crazy. This is not normal at all and not the same as "заходишь". The only situation where I can imagine that question asked by a native speaker is something like this: I go around visiting every girl in the neighborhood but never visit the asker. Then she might ask me that question stressing "ко мне", which would mean "why won't you ever visit ME (now that you are visiting everybody else)?


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## Explorer41

MIDAV said:


> If my Russian girl friend told me that, I would think she had gone crazy. This is not normal at all and not the same as "заходишь". The only situation where I can imagine that question asked by a native speaker is something like this: I go around visiting every girl in the neighborhood but never visit the asker. Then she might ask me that question stressing "ко мне", which would mean "why won't you ever visit ME (now that you are visiting everybody else)?


Now I can guess I have gone crazy myself. Век живи -- век учись, дураком помрёшь.
Until this day I knew absolutely nothing of this kind


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## MIDAV

Explorer41 said:


> Until this day I knew absolutely nothing of this kind


It's not something you are supposed to know. You are supposed to feel it as a native speaker. Anyway, if you feel nothing for this particular phrase, try googling for "почему * никогда не зайдешь" and "почему * никогда не заходишь".
Specifically, this "никогда" just doesn't fit here with a perfective verb


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## Explorer41

OK, I _felt_ nothing of this kind. And I feel not now, of course. "никогда" fits here very well. As for googling, anyone can perform googling if s|he wishes, but conclusions may be different depending on different factors, so googling _per se_ doesn't count. I didn't check your googling.


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## MIDAV

We must be natives of different languages. And if googling doesn't count, then the opinion of one single person counts even less.


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## Explorer41

MIDAV said:


> We must be natives of different languages.


Of course! 
As for googling, it does not express opinions about validaty of concrete phrases. It expresses frequencies of concrete phrases, nothing more.


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## morzh

MIDAV said:


> We must be natives of different languages. And if googling doesn't count, then the opinion of one single person counts even less.



I am not sure I understood your first reply in its entirety, but as for this one - seems like you indeed speak different Russian from the rest of us.
Consider yourself the proverbial sergeant keeping the pace, and the rest of the platoon having trouble doing it.


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## MIDAV

morzh said:


> Consider yourself the proverbial sergeant keeping the pace, and the rest of the platoon having trouble doing it.


How does your comment help the original asker? 

Anyway, I did think I might be wrong if the rest of you people say different. That's why I invoked Google. If you prove me wrong using Google, I would readily change my opinion. 

The original question was: "In this case, why isn't the imperfective form used instead? 
My answer is: the imperfective form SHOULD be used instead, or "никогда" should be omitted. In general, this construction "почему + никогда + perfective verb in future" is very uncommon and requires a very specific set of circumstances or a significant stretch of imagination (like what I tried to describe above). 

The other question was: "Or is it comparable to English 'Why won't you ever come to me?". 
I would say: No. It is more comparable to English "Why will you never visit me?"


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## MIDAV

Explorer41 said:


> googling ... does not express opinions about validaty of concrete phrases. It expresses frequencies ......



I tend to equate validaty with frequency. 
(But it's a whole different discussion)


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## Explorer41

morzh said:


> "Не зайдешь" (не позвонишь) and other perfect forms are used often in reproachful speech / characteristic of a person. It is not typically used otherwise.


I'd say also, that for me the phrase "почему ты никогда ко мне не зайдёшь" means something like "why do you never visit me, even a single time?"


MIDAV said:


> The original question was: "In this case, why isn't the imperfective form used instead?
> My answer is: the imperfective form SHOULD be used instead, or "никогда"  should be omitted.


I completely disagree with you  . The combination perfective + "никогда", though used less frequently (in less frequent circumstances, maybe: usually we don't have to reproach a person or to complain so much), is not less valid.


MIDAV said:


> or a significant stretch of imagination (like what I tried to describe above)


Sorry, I'm not familiar with your private life, so I don't understand you. Maybe she has not to complain, it's another story, not relevant here.


MIDAV said:


> The other question was: "Or is it comparable to English 'Why won't you ever come to me?".
> I would say: No. It is more comparable to English "Why will you never visit me?"


Yes. Now I agree with this  Sorry, I was wrong at the first time -- I had not understood properly the English phrase.


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## Pickman

Explorer41 said:
			
		

> I'd say also, that for me the phrase "почему ты никогда ко мне не  зайдёшь" means something like "why do you never visit me, even a single  time?"


"Почему ты никогда мне не заходишь" means essentially the same while conforming to established lexical norms. So it's a better choice, anyway.
Perhaps your case is better illustrated by "Почему ты _никак_ ко мне не зайдешь?"


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## Explorer41

Pickman said:


> "Почему ты никогда мне не заходишь" means essentially the same while conforming to established lexical norms.


Rephrasing, for me the difference is essential. Though I agree, the most of the meaning is the same.


Pickman said:


> So it's a better choice, anyway.


It depends.


Pickman said:


> Perhaps your case is better illustrated by "Почему ты _никак_ ко мне не зайдешь?"


Yet another different phrase. Yes, I like it. Also: "а что ты никак ко мне не зайдёшь?.." And many more, I can guess.


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## Pickman

Explorer41 said:


> It depends.


Would you really recommend your variant to a foreign learner of Russian?
Transformed, it may pass as a negative form, e.g.
_(grumpily) И не зайдет-то никогда = Хоть раз __бы __зашел = He really could drop in._
This is highly colloquial but at least it sounds natural to a Russian ear.


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## MIDAV

Explorer41 said:


> Now I agree with this



I'm happy there is something you agree with me on. 
Hopefully, you will agree with me more if I put it this way: 
The original phrase with зайдешь is NOT INCORRECT (it is valid, as you put it). But the variant with заходишь is more common and therefore PREFERABLE to a foreign learner.

BTW, gotta love what Pickman said: "essentially the same while conforming to established lexical norms"


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## Explorer41

MIDAV said:


> The original phrase with зайдешь is NOT INCORRECT (it is valid, as you put it). But the variant with заходишь is more common and therefore PREFERABLE to a foreign learner.


For speaking and writing -- yes. For reading and overall understanding of the language it is important to know both and not to drop either from sight; and to understand their difference as well, at least approximately.


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