Russian Word of the Day

Здравствуйте! My students and I really enjoy your site.

One suggestion for a future word would be the usage and government of выходные дни and уикенд. (uikend and vykhodnye dni, just in case my Cyrillic isn't coming through).

Спасибо!

Laura Goering

Thanks for your blog.

I'm a South Korean student, studying Russian language in Ukraine.

I've been in Ukraine for about two months but it is still very hard to understand the language.

I found your site by chance and was moved by your knowlege on Russian and English languages.

All the contents are very educational, helpful.

Also your explanation on Russian words makes me easy to understand the language.

Thanks again for your efforts and content.

Hi! Of all the little things to be curious about, I'd like to know the Russian names for different types of flowers and trees. Silly, maybe?

Don's response: I don't think wanting to know the names of trees and flowers is silly at all! I don't have a ready-made list of them, but the first place I would probably look for such a thing would be Genevra Gerhart's “The Russian's World: Life and Language.” It's a marvelous book.

How about some focus on verb participles in Russian?

Don responds: Participle formation and use is one of my favorite topics! I've intended to put together a set of ultimate participle references for some time. I'll let you know as soon as I put them together.

The organizing principle for this blog is actually vocabulary items more than grammatical structures, but I'll try to include more verbal adjectives and verbal adverbs in the example sentences.

It doesn't belong here but I'd have suggestion for a post. I'm confused about these verbs: "ждать, подождать, погодить". I know that the wolf allways says "Ну погоди!" to the rabbit in well known cartoon. But could I use "подожди" or something else? Or what's the difference.

Hi, I've got one technical question. Is there any reason for declension cases ordering you're using? I mean Nom, Acc, Gen, Pre, Dat, Ins.

If not, I'd suggest to rather use ordering that seems standardized to me. It is "Nominative, Genitive, Dative, Accusative, Instrumental, Prepositional".

I think it's sorted this way in many languages. This ordering is allways used in czech languge (we have one extra class - vocal). As far as I remember I think that same ordering uses german (they've got on the contrary just 4 classes). And wherever I looked (mostly Internet) I found this ordering when russian grammar was explained. But I don't claim it is allways so in russian.

I'd want to know what other non-native russian speakers think about that. Even oppinion of someone who's gone through russian grammar school would be interesting, cause that's the place where kids learn these rules almost like poems.

Don responds: The traditional order used in Russian textbooks and references is a variation of the order used to describe Latin and Greek. It continues to be used in Slavic study for only one reason: inertia. The linguistic order is a more rational system because it groups overlapping endings in such a way that they are easier for a beginning student to learn. You can see the two systems neatly contrasted here.

When I first began studying Russian, I learned the traditional order; I eventually taught it as well. I first came across the linguistic order when studying Old Russian. In 2002 I began teaching Russian from a textbook that used the linguistic order in its reference materials. Having now taught using both systems, I have no doubt that non-Russians learn Russian declension much better using the linguistic order than the traditional order.

Great job, outstanding blog - keep it up!

Outstanding site. I'm going to bring this in to my Russian class, which happens to be in an Arizona state prison. Don't worry - I do this on my own time, gratis. Your tax dollars are not being used for this endeavor.

Ah great site, thanks!

My students and I really enjoy your site.

Hey man, just want to start off saying that I love RWOD. I've made it my default page, actually. But the thing is I find it a little unintuitive to search through the site looking for words. My suggestion is that you implement a "random word" button that displays a random word (duh, koneshno). But, don't stress over it. If it's too complicated of a program, then don't bother (I'm not a programmer in any sense, so I don't know how hard something like this would be.)

peace

May 25, 2009

Don responds: I like the idea of adding a random entry button. I'll keep my eyes open to see if there is a way to integrate such a thing without having to master the whole code base for the blogging software.

May 26, 2009

Don responds: Today I became obsessed with the idea of generating a top ten list for RWotD, and on the way figured out that generating a complete alphabetical list of entries and a random link were pretty simple as well. I haven't mastered the code base for b2evolution, the software on which RWotD runs, so the pages do not look as clean as the rest of the interface, but they are fast-and-dirty functional. For now I am happy with that.

Hi, i just want to congratulate you on a wonderful site, its the first time i've come across it and it is a huge help. I have recently moved to Russia and just been granted temporary residency and am studying Russian at home with the help of my girlfriend and her family. Ive found your site so informative and useful in its approach that i just wanted to write a little thank you in response. As an englishman and one who doesn't speak any other foreign languges i have found it hard to grasp Russian but with work and patience (mostly on other people's part, i have to say!) i'm getting there. This site will definitly bring me on leaps and bounds and is such a useful aid.

Thanks again, Matt

Matt,

Congratulations on your residency in Russia! I have found the study of Russian to be continually fascinating for over thirty years now, and I have found Russian hospitality to be some of the best on the planet. I expect you will have the same experience.

All the best, Don.

I love this site! I am a huge fan of Russian singer, Vitas. I have been learning Russian to better appreciate his works. I use a lot of methods - Rosetta Stone, Living Language, Pimsleur. It is going slowly due to lack of time. But what all these methods lack for me is explanation about the words, origins, customs, etc. I am finding lots of this on your site. Thank you so much! If it is okay, I would like to link to it on the fan site I keep that is devoted to Vitas. There is a Russian language section.

Just to say thanks very much for this wonderful blog. As a slow, intermediate learner I find it very useful. It gives a lot of insight into colloquial usage of Russian and interesting cultural background information. I'm sure it takes quite a bit of effort but keep up the good work!
Charles from Oxford, UK

Thank you very much for the Russian for Gringos 2 keyboard layout.
I am a novice to computing,and to the Russian language; but found your instructions clear and easy to follow.
I will have no hesitation in following your excellent website in the future.

This web site is awesome. I learn so many useful verb constructions from your blog. Thanks for all the work you do in preparing this stuff.

Hi Don,

I am self-studying Russian and am truly enjoying your blog. Your stories and explanations make learning a very enjoyable experience and also help make the information stay in memory.

I hope you will be able to help me understand when it is appropriate to use different words meaning "bakery."

Specifically, I am looking at the difference between булочная and пекарня. It seems that булочная is a store, while пекарня is a baking establishment.

Which word would be used if the business is both a baking establishment and a store?

Also, I have seen the word хлебопекарня which I assume is a bread bakery. What construct would one use when referring to a bread store, or a combination bread store and baking establishment? One option for a store is хлебный магазин. Would булочная хлеба also be an appropriate construct?

Please feel free to either answer me directly or in a post on your blog (or both). Thank you in advance for your help.

Best Regards, Mark

Don responds: Hi, Mark. I don't normally have time to respond to people who aren't my current students, but you're in luck: I can take the time today. My understanding is that пекарня is a place that actually bakes bread products. Булочная is a store that sells булки/булочки “rolls.” Most places that sell rolls also sell regular bread. A булочная does not necessarily bake its own products. As to булочная хлеба,I can't imagine anyone saying that phrase.

The information about the Rwotd are always interesting. Keep up the good job. Thanks.

Hey there.

I just wanted to let you know I think your site is very useful. Keep up the good work! :)

Thank you for this website! I study russian in Italy but no one ever explained about cultural aspects! I would like to thank you for the instructions on time expressions, they have been very usefull!

Отличный блог! С удовольствием читаю, хотя сам я и русский.

А теперь вопрос. Дон, скажите, пожалуйста, как долго Вы жили в России (я почти уверен, что Вы там жили)? Или спрошу совсем напрямик: Вы - русский?! :-) Не может нерусский человек знать русский язык и культуру НАСТОЛЬКО хорошо! :-)

Don responds: Здравствуйте, уважаемый г-н Никифоров!

Спасибо большое за добрые слова. Я посещал Россию семь раз, но там никогда не жил больше двух месяцев. Я родился в Тусоне, штат Аризона, и, увы, в нашей семье нет ни одной капли русской крови. Блог получается у меня неплохо, потому что перечитываю каждую статью, поправляю очевидные ошибки. Когда в чём-нибудь сомневаюсь, прошу уточнения у друзей. Конечно в устной речи мои грамматические грехи высказываются намного виднее.

Всего наилучшего, Дон.

This site is a literal treasure trove of information about Russian for beginners.

I had never expected to find such a great site about Russian in English.

I think you should consider a more personalised theme for the site - the blue/white theme is the default theme, I think - your site is too good for that.

Greetings from Sweden.

I just ADORE this site! I think it's amazing. I am the russian myself and a teacher of russian language and literature. I think this site is perfect for the students, who have trouble with their vocabulary.

P.S. If you have any questions about russian language, I'll be glad to discuss it with you personally. So mail me :)

Woooow! This site was just recommended to me by a friend. I have been doing a Russian course for a bit over a year now (currently doing my A3 certificate, which is the third lowest), so I'll be coming here every day from now. :-)
I love how you add a cultural component to the explanations + declensions.

Thumbs up!

Отличный сайт! Великолепное знание материала. Если бы я был иностранцем, взял бы материал сайта на заметку для интенсивного изучения русского языка. Удачи в развитии проекта!

Re: И (часть первая)

I just wanted to let you know, that I LOVE your website. You put a lot of time, effort and knowledge into what you have created here, and it shows. It is by far one of the most useful and reasonable tools online for intermediate speakers looking to improve their Russian...like me. Спасибо большое!!!!

Здравствуйте, присоеденяюсь к благодарностям.

Прочитал несколько записей и поражен качеством материала. Не нашёл ни одной ошибки в примерах на русском языке. Действительно удивительно, как автор, не будучи русским, даёт себе труд разбираться во всех хитросплетениях нашего непростого языка.

Кстати, вы не поверите, но я использую ваш блог для изучения английского :-)

Don responds: Спасибо за добрые слова! Правду сказать, я в большом долгу перед нашими читателями, которые сразу же показывают на наши ошибки и опечатки. Без них мои языковые грехи были бы намного виднее.

Хороший блог.
Вот бы найти что нибудь похожее для изучения английского!!

Великолепный сайт!!!

Русский - мой родной язык, но мне безумно интересно читать все материалы. Вы вкладываете душу в то, что Вы делаете, а это очень приятно! От всего сердца желаю Вам успехов в Вашем нелегком труде!

Если не секрет, как давно Вы изучаете русский?

Don responds: Спасибо за добрые слова! Я занялся русским тридцать лет назад, в последнем году средней школы в маленьком городе в западном Колорадо. Одна преподавательница немецкого языка, Ruth Warner, каждый год препдагала курс русского, если только находилось определённое количество желающих учеников. В том году нам повезло, нас было, по-моему, человек восемь. Она вела урок во время своего ежедневного подготовительного часа, то есть, за это ей не платили, она это делала просто по душе. Перед такими людьми мы все в большом долгу.

Happy New Year, Don, and thanks for your very useful blog.

Outstanding blog, Don. Thanks for all the work you put into this, as students can depend on your information and examples being correct. Happy New Year!

Хороший сайт! Молодцы! Good!

This is an amazing site. I will use this in my class all the time. Please keep doing it, we need your background to further the study and interest of learning Russian in our country for our young students.

Thank you so much for this site, you make learning fun. I like to peruse your blog before I embark on my horribly dry study regime ... your blog tends to remind me that Russian is a living, breathing thing, and not some stale textbook with R. Crumb drawings in it, or those terribly flat, one-dimensional word glosses. Kudos!

Thank you very much for this blog!! I love your entries and your sense of humor with some of the examples you provide!

Вы проделали огромную работу! неужели такое под силу не "native speakers" ?
Я восхищен!!!

I have been studing english with my ipod for last six month. But I always have been speaking only with myself (((
If somebody likes to speak russian, if somebody wants to study russian language - we could help each other.

You can reach me by e-mail:
iiidemian[AT]gmail.com also you can find me in skype area.

See ya!

Здравствуйте.

Вот уже почти пару месяцев каждый день читаю Ваш блог и был в полной уверенности что Вы русский :) пока не прочитал guestbook. Я, наоборот, самостоятельно изучаю английский и мне очень интересно увидеть родные русские слова с другой стороны :)

Keep going on. Thanks.

Aah, I'm really amused with this blog. Not only it shows my language from the other side and helps in understanding English, but also highlights some interesting moments, which I've started to take notice about in the studys of other languages. And now I know the level of language mastery I am to reach. Maybe, someday, I'll start some similar blog. By the way, Don, do you know some other languages beside English and Russian?

Благодарствую и низко бью челом.

Don responds: Thanks for the kind words! I have studied eleven languages, but really I only speak Russian, English, and some Spanish. Over the next few months I expect to study Pashto. That should be quite interesting because I have never studied a language that uses Arabic script, and grammatically it should be a challenge because the language has split ergativity, which strikes me as an entirely freakish grammatical occurence.

Your stuff is always jaw dropping. What an asset you are to the field and your students. Thank you for sharing your resources and ingenuity!

I have been studying Russian for about a few years. I am so glad to see a website that is credible, give explanations, and puts the word into context! Your "word of the day" blog is the best!

Hello. I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate this site.

It is a mini-masterpiece of design and content and I learn something useful from it every day.

With best wishes from a very slow Russian learner:)

Здравствуйте, Дон.

У вас очень интересный блог. Я сама русская, и ваш блог помогает мне в изучении аглийского языка. Спасибо, что взяли на себя труд донести информацию о русском (и английском) разговорных языках в столь легкой и доступной форме.

И удачи Вам.

Спасибо за Ваш труд. У Вас утонченный и правильный язык; а ваши объяснения грамматики доступны и интересны. Ваш сайт очень помогает моему голландскому другу, который учит русский.
Спасибо за то, что делаете нас с ним ближе.