Russian Word of the Day

"You will sometimes also encounter две новых машины, аlthough новые is better style these days."

Aren't we supposed to use genitive singular - новой - with 'два/две'?

Don responds: although we use the genitive singular of nouns after два/две, we never use the genitive singular of adjectives with them. No Russian will ever say «две новой машины», instead they will say «две новые машины» most often, and occasionally you will come across «две новых машины».

This could happen ONLY in the US where there is no respect for professional translators!! Most of the US State Department's Office of the Language Services' staff does not have even an undergraduate degree in either linguists or translation studies. As long as they continue to think that anybody who speaks two languages can translate - we will continue to be an object of global ridicule.

You've forgotten, instrumental case has another form: нЕю/Ею

1) Typo: какОЙ объём

2) There is a kind of tradition among Russians (not only "geekoids" actually, it is very widespread) to rename units of information into other units, which sound alike. It was started from kilobytes, which were called "килО", like kilograms. Then megabytes were renamed into meters and gigabytes into hectares.

Here is a popular tale from the time of bad dialups as an illustration:
http://forum.zelek.ru/index.php?showtopic=5282

Don responds: Thanks! The typo has been corrected.

The анекдот you linked was very funny. I think it could probably be translated into English and still be funny, but it would take some work... Maybe if I get through my week's paper work...

Shady_arc, and what does "контрпример" means? I have never heard it in spoken language.

Don, I thought that you would get a kick out of this use of the word "aktsia" from today's news (8/31):Задержанные вечером 31 августа в Москве участники акции на Триумфальной площади освобождены из милиции. В общей сложности в Москве было задержано около 70 человек, в том числе Борис Немцов, Эдуард Лимонов, один из организаторов акции Константин Косякин и координатор "Левого фронта" Сергей Удальцов.... »»

"контрстратегия" is one of them.

There is a number of words with 5 consonants in a row, such as "ангстрем", "усердствовать", "постскриптум" or "контрпример"

Cool post. Is that the "yer" I hear about now and then?
And now I know how to saw "player" in Russian! Вот это да!

Don responds: Yes, indeed. Ъ was the back yer (perhaps pronounced like the ‘u’ in ‘put’, and Ь was the front yer (perhaps pronounced like the ‘i’ in ‘pit’). The fall of the yers vastly complicated Slavic morphology. Nowadays the Slavic languages have the most astonishing consonant clusters. It is sometimes said that there is one word in the Russian language that has six consonants in a row with now intervening vowels. I leave it to you to sleuth it out. (Actually, I remember spotting one with seven once, but I was too lazy to note the source. I've regretted that lapse ever since.)

I just found this blog- it's really interesting and gives me a chance to keep up my Russian. Thanks for posting!

I wonder what happens when you feed it to women? Perhaps they turn into gremlins?

It may cause extra weight gain ;-)

Another expression which I heard often when something didn't work out as hoped or expected was: "nichevo ne vyshlo" or "ot etovo nichego ne vyshlo." Am I remembering correctly Dan?

Don responds: Yup, you remember correctly. We may address that meaning in another week or two.

I too am shocked to learn there is a translation for сало - I've never seen it, the product, anywhere else so never thought to look it up. Thanks for that!

Hi there.

You've got already 4 comments awaiting so I decided to add my two cents. :)

First off, "прищик" (pimple) is misspelled, "прЫщик" is correct.

Second, "полнейший бред" to some people might sound rude. Althoug the meaning is right I'd recommend to change it to something more polite like "вздор" or "чушь".

Don responds: Thanks! The typoes are corrected.

I actually wanted "полнейший бред" to sound harsh...

FATBACK! The translation for "сало" is fatback. THANK YOU! (And here all this time I've been describing it as raw pickled pigs fat, or salted pig fat, or "the inverse of bacon"...)

There IS a direct translation into English. Thank you.

Michael, it's "черт побери", I guess :)

I keep reading about fatback in Russia but have never seen - or tasted - any. Can you do a complete entry about that some time? If you already have, I regret not having read it. (Love the Nestles bar!)

Don responds: Click the "alphabetical listing" link from the main blog page and then follow it down to сало.

As a Peace Corps Volunteer currently living in Georgia (I read this blog regularly thanks to an ex-ASU student who's also serving here now), I can attest that "Just for Men" chocolate can be found throughout the former Soviet Union. When asked why men need their own chocolate, many Georgians and Armenians (I'm currently in a minority community) reply that it goes better with cognac.

1)Typo: прЫщики

2)Women will be OK but something wrong can happen to chocolate if they reach it.

Don responds: Typoes have been corrected. Thanks!

"Aktion" is now common usage in German too. Duden says its Swiss German, though I was in northern Germany when I saw it, and it was all over. To take a stab in the dark, it may come from French "une action promotionnelle".

Ha, and I am very surprised to learn the "share of stock" meaning, as my only encounters with it have been reklamy...