Questions tagged [лексикон]
Sets of words or words with specialized meanings that have to be learned.
177
questions
6
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Difference in usage between “здание,” “сооружение” & “постройка”
I it my understanding that all of these mean a building, as in “man-made structure.” However, I have been told that сооружение and постройка are rather technical. What do they really mean? How are ...
3
votes
2
answers
568
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What is the difference in meaning between "латвийка" and "латышка"?
"Латвийка" and "латышка" are both translated into English as "a (female) Latvian" (or, which in English is a rather archaic form, "a [female] Lett"). But what is their difference in meaning? Is one of ...
3
votes
2
answers
217
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Does word order influence the meaning of this sentence?
Intro: Here is some text where the speaker is explaining their plans for their future education:
Диссертации только после магистратуры и на соискание (получение)
степени. Если всё пойдёт по плану,...
4
votes
3
answers
998
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How to say "moving in to a new house"
I was wondering how you can say in Russian that you are moving into a new house/apartment or moving to a new city (to live there, not to visit it). I find it difficult to find a good translation for ...
4
votes
3
answers
166
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Can a woman be тетка to her зять in any sense of the words?
A woman is not an aunt to her son-in-law, but does зять have an alternate meaning other than son-in-law, or тетка have an alternate meaning other than aunt, such that a woman can be тетка to her зять?
...
2
votes
1
answer
419
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случаться vs происходить vs статься
Hey I'm confused about the use of случаться vs происходить, as well as бывать and статься. They appear high up on most of the frequency lists I've seen, I've read that случаться describes a random ...
1
vote
0
answers
420
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Lomonosov's three literary styles [closed]
According to Serhii Plokhy's Lost Kingdom, at a time of linguistic-nationalist tension, Mikhail Lomonosov prescriptively defined three styles:
the high style, to be used for the composition of ...
4
votes
2
answers
349
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Difference between "пасть" and "упасть"
I found a source saying that the perfective counterpart of падать is both упасть and пасть, so I was wondering what the difference between these two words is.
So far I could only find a post ...
9
votes
2
answers
538
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Difference between царь and король?
The only sites answering this question are in Russian text, so I wanted to ask it here.
2
votes
1
answer
187
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Feedback request for this small collection of Russian words
Native English speaker here. I'm building a collection of flashcards to learn Russian (that I will eventually share on Anki) and I'm hoping that someone could take 60 seconds to confirm the accuracy ...
4
votes
4
answers
299
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"Повидло" vs "Варенье"
I'm a native Russian speaker and you may laugh at me, but I don't fully understand the difference between повидло and варенье. Both words are translated as jam and seem to be used interchangeably. Are ...
2
votes
2
answers
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What's the difference between ничем and ничего?
Both mean "nothing" as far as I understand, so what is the difference?
2
votes
4
answers
198
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Does word "расфокусировка" exist?
I was looking for a word meaning "blur" (as a noun) or "bokeh".
I know the word расфокусированный means "out of focus", but does "расфокусировка" exist?
6
votes
4
answers
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How to say "slam a door open/shut" in Russian?
I would like to translate this sentence to Russian:
The doors of the [beduin] tents slammed open and shut in the wind.
I found the verbs хло́пнуть and захло́пнуть for shutting or slamming a door. ...
5
votes
2
answers
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"Промышленники" working for the fur companies
The term промышленник described individuals seeking furs and the employees of 1700s and 1800s fur companies such as Shelikhov-Golikov and the Russian-American Company. Those workers were involved in a ...
2
votes
1
answer
184
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"Радио" or "ра́дио"
I was wondering which is the correct form. радио or ра́дио ? I mean I've seen people writing both of them. And I've also seen many letters with this accent above the a. Is it necessary? Which spelling ...
5
votes
2
answers
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Is "соблюдатель" a valid word?
..., стать соблюдателем существующего порядка и охранником международных правил, или стать ...
or something better to say this in Russian?
Thanks!
10
votes
3
answers
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Гол!... - нет - штанга!
Русская футбольная терминология естественно заимствована из английского. Многое было переведено на русский, многое русским освоено, кое-что продолжает существовать в обоих вариантах.
Есть, однако, ...
8
votes
3
answers
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What did крестьянин из государственных mean in the 1897 census?
What did the phrases крестьянин из государственных and крестьянка из государственных mean in the Russian Imperial Census of 1897? State-owned serfs had been emancipated long before, in 1866.
If I ...
7
votes
2
answers
343
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"Vrra" is a hispanization of which Russian word?
Mariano Payeras, a Spanish priest, wrote in an 1822 diary entry:
As a last courtesy our officers said goodbye to all the Russians who saluted us with four cannon shots, hat waving, and gestures, ...
9
votes
3
answers
1k
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How to remember the differences between all of the "-гляд-" verbs?
There are many verbs based on the root -гляд-, which all mean something similar to "look at/glance" (взгляд), and are among the most commonly used words of the Russian language.
Because of this, they ...
8
votes
5
answers
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What's a good translation for "HP" / "Hit Points"?
"HP" (standing for "Hit Points" or "Health Points") is a term commonly found in sci-fi and fantasy role-playing games. Can anyone give me a clue as to how to translate ...
6
votes
2
answers
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"Kind regards" in Russian
I have been looking around in the net, and I have several options come up, so I better ask those who know. Is "С уважением" a proper end of a mail with equivelant to kind regards or is it something ...
13
votes
1
answer
995
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Is there a difference between "отель" and "гостиница"?
Is there a difference between words отель and гостиница? Can I always use either of them for some given estate?
4
votes
2
answers
222
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French loanwords ending in "-tion" [duplicate]
I've noticed that, not only in Russian, but in many other Eastern European languages that in French loanwords that end in "-tion", the suffix almost always appears as "-cija" (-ция). Examples include ...
2
votes
2
answers
246
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Is there a comprehensive list of where "в" and "на" are used?
For instance, I have the impression that the phrase "on the toilet" translates to "в туалете" or "на унитазе", but that switching "в" and "на" between either of these two phrases would be incorrect.
...
4
votes
2
answers
802
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Roman and Greek loan words in Russian and Germanic languages
I have had the impression that there are fewer Latin and Greek loan words in Russian than there are in German and in English. Is my impression right, and is there documentation about this?
6
votes
4
answers
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Насколько архаично слово "магнитофон"? Что сегодня используется наиболее часто вместо него?
Мой задачник часто использует слова "слушать магнитофон". Насколько архаично слово "магнитофон"? Что сегодня чаще употребляется? "МР3-плеер"? "иПод"? "сотовый"? (как слово и как технология)
Я не ...
13
votes
1
answer
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Почему зовут символ @ "собака"? Why is the @-symbol called "dog"?
Почему зовут символ @ "собака"? Why is the @-symbol called "dog"?
I saw this translation on the Babbel website. Most of the Russian terms regarding computer technology seem to be either direct ...
2
votes
3
answers
442
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What are some words that can translate "butterface" into Russian?
According to the UrbanDictionary website, butterface/butter face is an American slang for:
A girl who is hot, except for her (but her, butter) face.
Can you think of any common slang or playful ...
5
votes
1
answer
486
views
Что значит "ПО"? (What does the abbreviation "ПО" stand for?)
I see this a lot in the context of computer programs. My original guess was that it stood for something like
"программа операции"
meaning something like operating system (i.e. "ПО=OS"), but it seems ...
7
votes
2
answers
241
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"To have free time" - is "располагать" mandatory?
Right now I'm learning about constructions of occurences and I have a quesitions about some fact.
Let's assume someone asks you if you could help him. And he says the following (excerpt from the ...
3
votes
2
answers
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Рубашка -- единственное исконно-русское название предмета одежды?
Правда ли, что рубашка (от рубить) -- более-менее единственный элемент современной одежды или обуви, называющимся исконно русским словом? Вот тут список некоторых из основных слов, все остальные ...
10
votes
5
answers
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What exactly separates Russian swearing from others?
I've been told more than once by Russian speakers that Russian swear words have some kind of different connotation than English ones do, yet without being a speaker I can never quite understand how. ...
3
votes
4
answers
323
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How Contemporary Is Tolstoy's Language?
I am very interested to know from Russian speakers about their attitude towards Tolstoy's language. When I read any of his work, whether it is his extended writing or short stories, the words he use ...
4
votes
2
answers
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What does всевеликий mean?
I have encountered "всевеликое войско донское", but what exactly does it mean in Russian? Perhaps it is dialectal? Can it be seen in other context?
2
votes
3
answers
130
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The word пахтярь
Does anybody know what the word пахтярь means? It appears to refer to a profession.
I'm guessing it means "ploughman" but I can't find it in any dictionaries.
Answers in Russian are welcome.
2
votes
3
answers
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Is there a vocabulary list comparable to Basic English?
Basic English and its kin are artificial dialects which represent, among other features, a carefully-pared-down vocabulary intended to be fairly comprehensive and expressive for its thrift. The ...
0
votes
1
answer
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Is there a word such as женат and замужем for homosexuals? [duplicate]
Is there a word such as женат and замужем for homosexuals? Which would they use (in case they married in another country and came to Russia afterwards)?
14
votes
2
answers
959
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Difference between грусть, печаль, тоска?
When to use one or the other, and in wich context?
1
vote
4
answers
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Что значит выражение "Не попадись под ключ,"?
Вперёд, болты! (Ноль) Федор Чистяков
http://www.falshivim-vmeste.ru/songs/1177891200.html
Не попадись под ключ,
Сегодня нервы сдвинуты.
Значит ли это некий вирусный штамм?
6
votes
3
answers
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Etymology of крест
Russian wiktionary claim that the word крест is loanword from Old High German krist. Is it traditional and valid etymology? Do Russian have any trace of proper (not borrowed) Protoslavic word with ...
5
votes
1
answer
2k
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Vocabulary in a computer game
Someone I know is making a computer game set in pre-revolutionary Russia. The game itself is not in Russian, but she would like the buttons to have Russian words attached to increase the atmosphere of ...
3
votes
1
answer
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Через Интернет или по Интернету
Как правильно сказать: "Через Интернет" или "по Интернету", или оба варианта правильные?
3
votes
1
answer
186
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Etymology of word фум-лента
What is the etymology of the Russian word фум-лента (for isolating waterpipes)?
5
votes
1
answer
408
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What does "korobchil" mean?
What does "korobchil" mean?
From this song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfLeHdTDhUg
6
votes
2
answers
910
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Which kind of pepper?
In a Russian book about Uzbek cooking I read the following phrase in a recipe for lagman:
... молотый красный жгучий перец ...
With the help of the Oxford Russian Dictionary I translated this as
...
5
votes
3
answers
587
views
How to say "come and vote" in Russian?
I have two ways to say it:
Дай свой голос!
Проголосуйте!
The context is that there is a big voting going on and I want to invite Russian speaking people to come and vote also for the greater good.
...
3
votes
2
answers
162
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Are "окидывать взглядом" and "заглядывать" interchangeable?
As far as I can tell, both окидывать взглядом and заглядывать have the same general meaning. Are there any nuances that they don't share? Is one more colloquial?
1
vote
3
answers
246
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use of сплошь да рядом
I tend to use the expression "more often than not" quite often in English, so naturally when I came across сплошь да рядом, I immediately adopted it and started using it. But I never hear other ...