Questions tagged [существительные]

Questions concerning nouns, their form, spelling, functions, derivation, meaning and so on.

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Действительно ли по новым правилам слово "кофе" среднего рода?

Многие говорят, что согласно новым правилам "кофе" официально стал(о) считаться существительным среднего рода. Насколько это соответствует действительности? Если это действительно так, то когда было ...
Armen Tsirunyan's user avatar
18 votes
5 answers
4k views

What's the plural for "пиво"?

Yesterday I visited a friend in Oxford. At some point we stopped at his favourite pub, where, as he said, was "большой выбор пив". This didn't sound right and got me thinking, but I soon realised ...
Aleks G's user avatar
  • 7,238
14 votes
5 answers
3k views

What is the difference between дыра and дырка?

What is the difference in usage, if any, between дыра and дырка? For comparison, my impression is that нуль and ноль are largely equivalent except that there are some standard phrases using one word ...
KCd's user avatar
  • 4,956
14 votes
1 answer
1k views

Various words for "priest". What are their emotional connotations?

There are various words used for "priest" in Russian language: поп, батюшка, священник, иерей, ксендз... What are emotional connotations of this words and when are they appropriate to use?
zefciu's user avatar
  • 899
13 votes
3 answers
627 views

Can anyone clear up some discrepancies between rules for numeral+adjective+noun agreement for 2/3/4 and actual usage (as found through e-sources)?

While trying to augment my knowledge on Russian numerals with regard to how they combine with nouns and adjectives, I paid a visit to Reverso after learning that any adjectives placed between the ...
Lisa Beck's user avatar
  • 2,205
11 votes
4 answers
791 views

Why Russians use adjective when speaking about their nation and nouns for the rest of the world?

how come that russian (русский) in context of ethnic group is adjective, but all(?) other ethic groups are called using nouns, американец, серб, эстонец, латыш, казах ... Are there similar examples in ...
Gennadi's user avatar
  • 163
10 votes
1 answer
1k views

"свеч" and "свечей" - what is the correct version

I have been thinking about for a while, but didn't come to any conclusion. What is the correct version for "свечи" (plural for "свеча") in the genitive? "Как расстанешься, ...
Denis's user avatar
  • 275
9 votes
3 answers
389 views

Meaning of "подъезд"

When I look in dictionaries, they give me driveway, but then the following sentences don't really make sense. It sounds more like a part of a building (complex): Мы живем в одном подъезде. Моя ...
CocoPop's user avatar
  • 7,974
9 votes
2 answers
3k views

Non-Russian names: to decline or not to decline?

Recently I was heckled by a fellow student of mine for saying "Я вижу Лору" (I see Laura). Since Laura (presumably) is not a Russian name, she insisted on "Я вижу Лора". So when to decline, when not ...
arney's user avatar
  • 367
9 votes
2 answers
281 views

How can one figure out if there is an implicit noun for a noun that declines like an adjective, and if so, what it is?

Certain nouns that decline like adjectives are adjectival nouns where it is standard to suppress the noun, e.g. ванная is short for ванная комната, and it is not too hard to guess what the implicit ...
Valiowk's user avatar
  • 411
9 votes
1 answer
313 views

Measurement units after numbers - genitive plural or nominative singular?

If a number ends with 0,5,6,7,8, or 9, the following noun is used in genitive plural. Do measurement units make an exception or not? Compare: В стаде триста девяносто коров. (В стаде тристо ...
Armen Tsirunyan's user avatar
8 votes
2 answers
458 views

What percentage of nouns with a мягкий знак are feminine vs. masculine

Yes, we can learn whether or not a noun is feminine, but does anyone have a break-down of the percentages? I know that the majority seem to be Feminine, but what is the exact figure? спасибо за ...
VCH250's user avatar
  • 3,477
8 votes
4 answers
409 views

«И беспечной птицей» - why instrumental?

Every source I can find of the lyrics of Тополиный пух claims that the song contains the following line near the beginning: И беспечной птицей в небо улетаешь If I understand correctly, «беспечной»...
Doorknob's user avatar
  • 183
8 votes
1 answer
1k views

Describe a Language Without the Noun for "Language"

In English it is rare to use the noun "language" when describing them. It is most common to name the language as such: Engl -ish Span -ish French Russi -an Germ -an Is it acceptable/common/...
TomSchober's user avatar
8 votes
4 answers
362 views

Difference between сожитель, любовник and фаворит

I encountered three different words to say "lover". My teacher said that сожитель has a negative connotation, it is rather "plebish", but I don't actually understand what kind of bad connotation it ...
AltGei's user avatar
  • 466
8 votes
5 answers
289 views

Are мускул and мышца synonymous?

Are мускул and мышца synonymous?
CocoPop's user avatar
  • 7,974
8 votes
4 answers
324 views

What case should a name use after the preposition 'with'?

See for example the following sentence: В Париж с Константином Коровиным Why the -ом on the first name and -ым on the last name? Are there any other words besides "with" that would see this ...
Lawrence DeSouza's user avatar
7 votes
5 answers
404 views

How to refer to bird legs: "нога" or "лапа"?

When are bird legs called ноги and when are they called лапы? I can see that it is different for different birds, ноги for a stork, лапы for a sparrow. Sometimes you can use both word for the legs ...
Olga's user avatar
  • 6,558
7 votes
3 answers
277 views

How should I inflect animate nouns when they are used to figuratively call inanimate objects, and vice versa?

In Russian, animate and inanimate nouns inflect differently. Let's compare "кабан" and "стакан": Я вижу кабанов. Я стреляю в кабана. Я вижу стаканы. Я стреляю в стакан. It is all ...
Mitsuko's user avatar
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7 votes
2 answers
211 views

"Добавить в друзья" - why nominative?

As far as I can tell, the Russian equivalent of the English phrase "to add smb" with regards to social media accounts like Facebook, VKontakte, etc. is "добавлять/добавить в друзья." My question is: ...
Гамлет Бененгели's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
258 views

Именование жителей городов

Человек, живущий в городе, может быть назван специальным существительным, которое обозначает его принадлежность к этому городу. Например житель: Москвы — москвич, Омска — омич, Ленинграда — ...
Vitaly's user avatar
  • 203
7 votes
2 answers
147 views

Anthropomorphized inanimates masculine declension

Take a clearly inanimate masculine noun, say подсолнух, and put it in a fable with anthropomorphic features. Now how should I put it in accusative? Мы видели высокий подсолнух, когда он пришёл..... ...
rslemos's user avatar
  • 221
6 votes
5 answers
826 views

Difference in usage between "пи́ща" and "еда"

As the title asks, what is the difference in usage between пи́ща and еда? Is one just a more formal version of the other? Are there any people/situations to which you could not usually apply one or ...
araihada's user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
343 views

Why are some city names, when named after people, given -sk suffix, but others aren't?

Two examples: Yekaterinburg was renamed to Sverdlovsk in 1924, after the man Yakov Sverdlov. Notice the -sk prefix. Orenburg was renamed to Chkalov in 1938, after the man Valery Chkalov. Notice this ...
DrZ214's user avatar
  • 551
6 votes
1 answer
2k views

мозг в местном/предложном падеже

Как правильно - в головном мозгу или в головном мозге?
user31264's user avatar
  • 8,522
6 votes
3 answers
402 views

"Битком набиты" — was "биток" actually a noun at some time?

Did биток always only exist in the context of the idiom "битком набиты", or was it a "perfectly valid noun in its own right" at some point in the past?
RegDwight's user avatar
  • 1,259
6 votes
1 answer
3k views

Одушевлённость шахматных фигур

Являются ли слова вроде ферзь одушевлёнными? С одной стороны, ферзь отвечает на вопрос "что", а не "кто". С другой, склоняется это существительное, по крайней мере в ед. ч., как одушевлённое: ...
user31264's user avatar
  • 8,522
6 votes
2 answers
4k views

Forming Russian nouns from verbs

I've noticed a couple of patterns in regards to forming nouns from verbs. 1) Removing the -ть from verbs ending in -бить/быть, -вить, чать and -ять and adding -тие (for example: разбить --> разбитие,...
Dylan Heard's user avatar
5 votes
4 answers
203 views

"Я один кто не знал, что вариантов у итогового теста два?"

вариантов или варианта? Или можно использовать обе вариации? Нужна ли запятая перед что? Можно ли использовать один, или грамматически верно использовать только единственный? Нужна ли запятая перед ...
Ramid's user avatar
  • 153
5 votes
2 answers
211 views

Nouns with mixed masc./fem. declensions

Does anyone know of any nouns like путь that are declined in a mixed masc./fem. way? What I mean is путь follows a typical feminine pattern for the dat./gen./prep. cases (пути), but its instrumental ...
Kачкодзьоб's user avatar
5 votes
3 answers
8k views

How do you say and spell “Тоска”

I am very curious about the Russian word “Toska.” The word that is difficult to translate in English and means loosely: melancholy, longing, boredom, spiritual anguish. How is this word written and ...
Julia's user avatar
  • 61
5 votes
3 answers
2k views

Why does the dictionary not have a gender for "часы"

It only says it is a noun and in singular number.
Lawrence DeSouza's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
147 views

Are composite note names(such as до-диез) declinable?

The names of simple notes до, ре, ми, фа, соль, ля, си are not declinable (несклоняемые). The names of the modifiers диез (sharp), бемоль, (flat), бекар (natural), etc. are declinable знак диезa, ...
Armen Tsirunyan's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
555 views

Does the Russian numeral rule for the adjective that comes between the number and the noun (see below) apply to animate nouns in actual usage?

The rule I refer to is this: For numeral + adjective + noun in genitive case structures where the numeral-noun-adjective phrase is serving in a nominative case (e.g., the three little pigs went to ...
Lisa Beck's user avatar
  • 2,205
4 votes
5 answers
222 views

"у нас туго с деньга́ми": Does this instrumental "деньга́ми" stem from "де́ньги" or "деньга́"?

у нас туго с деньга́ми The descriptions on Wiki have me puzzled, as it seems the "деньга́ми" can be the plural instrumental of either the plural-only noun "де́ньги" or the colloquial singular noun "...
Con-gras-tue-les-chiens's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
415 views

Little questions regarding "tram stop"

I'm a beginner and have a question regarding bus stop and tram stop. I want to say: "I'm going to the bus stop/tram stop." And I would like to use остановке. I know that остановка is feminine and I ...
user4746221's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
609 views

Plural for indeclinable nouns

Some foreign nouns are indeclinable (take пальто for example), yet sometimes we want to express many of it. How to do it?
rslemos's user avatar
  • 221
4 votes
4 answers
406 views

What's the difference between пользование and использование?

I looked пользование and использование up in the dictionary but they look the same to me. They translate the english word "use" or "usage". Could you please explain in which contexts you can use these ...
AltGei's user avatar
  • 466
4 votes
1 answer
180 views

"Mechanical Draughtsman" in Russian

Please, could somebody tell me how to say in Russian "Mechanical Draughtsman" It is a profession, trade. In English means a person who draws and designs mechanical, structural or machine parts. The ...
Martin1000's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
1k views

What are the rules, if any, for naming a city after a person?

Let me start with some examples: Leningrad / Ленинград (today Saint Petersburg / Санкт-Петербург) Leninsk / Ленинск Stalingrad / Сталингрaд​ (today Volgograd / Волгогрaд) Gorky / Горький (today ...
DrZ214's user avatar
  • 551
4 votes
1 answer
129 views

Is it true that adding an attributive sometimes causes a change in part of speech of the main word?

Please look at the following two sentences: Летом она отдыхала в санатории. Этим летом она отдыхала в санатории. What part of speech is the word "летом" in the 1st and in the 2nd sentence? ...
Alexander's user avatar
  • 905
4 votes
1 answer
372 views

"Город, смород" vs. "град, смрад" — is there any rhyme and reason behind all the metatheses of Modern Russian vs. Old Church Slavonic?

I am sure you've come across these word pairings before: город — град смород — смрад скользкий — склизкий ворота — врата ворон — враний ворог — враг холод — хлад (cf. хладнокровный) and so on and so ...
RegDwight's user avatar
  • 1,259
3 votes
5 answers
785 views

Is there a shorter or more colloquial word for "pet"?

The Russian translation for "pet" is домашнее животное, in this case meaning a domesticated animal one keeps in one's home. To a native English-speaker that seems like quite a bookish term. ...
user avatar
3 votes
3 answers
223 views

About sugar, tea and raisins and their partitive case (сахару, ча́ю, изюму, кишмишу)

I've noticed that some words, such as sugar (сахар), tea (чай) and raisins (изюм or кишмиш), have a partitive case (разделительный падеж), different from their genitive. However, I've also heard that ...
Xavier's user avatar
  • 335
3 votes
2 answers
212 views

Существительное "забывало"

I just used, without thinking, the word "забывало" to mean "a person who forgets things all the time". When I started to think about it, I couldn't remember having heard the word, nor could I find ...
Pifagor's user avatar
  • 131
3 votes
2 answers
140 views

When should "родина" be capitalized?

Is there a thumb rule for when to capitalize Родина? Or is it just a free-for-all poetic-license type of thing? For lack of a better example, Родина, еду я на Родину, Пусть кричат — "уродина!", ...
RegDwight's user avatar
  • 1,259
3 votes
3 answers
275 views

I am confused by the difference between the word for a language and the word for a people who speak that language [duplicate]

The word for a Russian is Русский. The word for the Russian language is по-русский or русский язык (i.e. they are the same). So you could say я Русский. However the word for an Englishman is ...
Bob Daley's user avatar
  • 783
3 votes
3 answers
220 views

Colours as nouns

Ran into this situation when trying to order fabric. Can colours in Russian take a noun form, or must it always be adjective + цвет? Secondly, if you were to name multiple colours, would you have to ...
araihada's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
331 views

Are there in Russian any inanimate masculine nouns ending on -a?

Are there any Russian inanimate masculine nouns ending on -a? I can think of many feminine ones (машина, ангина, книга, панорама, перспектива, etc.), but are there any masculine ones?
brilliant's user avatar
  • 5,752
3 votes
2 answers
13k views

Правильное сокращение «байт» и «бит»

Как правильно сокращать слово «байт»? В английском языке, обычно принято использовать заглавную букву «Б» для «байт», и строчную букву «б» для «бит». По-русски будет по-другому? Например, почему ...
cnst's user avatar
  • 573