along a narrow front on the west bank of

[GoldfishLord]

Russia has failed to encircle and isolate Kyiv with mechanized and airborne attacks as it had clearly planned to do. Russian forces are now engaging in more straightforward mechanized drives into Kyiv along a narrow front on the west bank of the Dnipro River and on a broad front to the northeast.

(Reference: https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/ukraine-conflict-update-9 )
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I'm not certain what the red part means in that context.

 

[5jj]

Does the following definition help?

front: The foremost line or part of an armed force; the furthest position that an army has reached and where the enemy is or may be engaged.

‘his regiment was immediately sent to the front’

Dictionary.com | Meanings & Definitions of English Words

The world's leading online dictionary: English definitions, synonyms, word origins, example sentences, word games, and more. A trusted authority for 25+ years!

www.lexico.com

 

[GoldfishLord]

.........
along a narrow front on the west bank of the Dnipro River and on a broad front to the northeast.

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I'm not sure why, even though "along" is being used before "a narrow front", "on" is being used before "a broad front" instead of the word along.

 

[Tarheel]

What is important to know is that in the one case we're talking about a narrow front, and in the other case we're talking about a broad front.

Narrow----> XX
Broad-----> XXXXXXX

 

[GoldfishLord]

Narrow----> XX
Broad-----> XXXXXXXXX

Is post #4 the answer to post #3?

 

[Tarheel]

That was the idea, yes.

 

[emsr2d2]

Is post #4 the answer to post #3?

That's a fair question. Post #4 doesn't explain why "along" was used when referring to the narrow front and "on" was used when referring to the broad front. I readily admit that I can't explain those choices. Perhaps Tarheel would like to expand on post #4 if he can explain it.

 

[Tdol]

Fronts are long- pushes through are salients and hard to hold. In WW1, there was the Western Front. In many battles, people broke through, but they rarely held the ground they occupied.

 

[Tarheel]

That's a fair question. Post #4 doesn't explain why "along" was used when referring to the narrow front and "on" was used when referring to the broad front. I readily admit that I can't explain those choices. Perhaps Tarheel would like to expand on post #4 if he can explain it.

No, I can't. I don't know why those particular prepositions were used, but they do seem to fit.

I don't know if the writer can say why those prepositions were used. We usually don't give that sort of thing much thought. That's especially true when you are writing a news article and have to meet a deadline.

 

[5jj]

No, I can't. I don't know why those particular pronouns were used, but they do seem to fit.

I think you meant prepositions.

 

[Skrej]

The important thing to focus on is that the word choice isn't really important to understanding of the overall sentence. You could easily swap the two and not change the meaning. The writer probably chose to use different prepositions simply for variety, rather than for any deeper meaning.

In fact, to me 'on' pairs better with 'narrow,' while 'along' works better with 'broad', but that's just my opinion.

 

[Tdol]

People often choose words without really thinking when speaking. Micro-analysing them afterwards may not reveal any underlying truths. It depends on the context and the speaker's purpose.