Мы любим грамматику!

Word of the day

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:00:53 +0100

возможно
vozmózhno
it is possible, supposedly, perhaps, maybe

Related:

возможно лучше/быстрее
as well/quickly as possible

Example sentences:

Она спрашивает, как это возможно.
She’s asking how that’s possible.

Всё возможно - было бы желание.
Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

Word of the day

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 22:00:52 +0100

занятый
zányatȳĭ
occupied, busy, engaged, booked

Example sentences:

Линия занята.
The line is engaged./The line is busy.

В городе много людей и автомобилей. Это занятой город.
There are a lot of people and cars in this city. It is a busy city.

Мать занята приготовлением ужина.
Mother is busy preparing dinner.

Above: Ivan Shishkin (1832-1898) - Edge of the Forest...

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 22:02:44 +0100

Above: Ivan Shishkin (1832-1898) - Edge of the Forest (1879)

Афанасий Афанасьевич Фет (1820-1892)

Шепот, робкое дыханье.
          Трели соловья,
Серебро и колыханье
          Сонного ручья.

Свет ночной, ночные тени,
          Тени без конца,
Ряд волшебных изменений
          Милого лица,

В дымных тучках пурпур розы,
          Отблеск янтаря,
И лобзания, и слезы,
          И заря, заря!..

Afanasy Afanasyevich Fet (1820-1892)
(Translation by Ali)

Whisper, timid breathing.
          The warbling of the nightingale,
The silver and the rippling
          Of the sleepy stream.

Light of night, night shadows
          Endless shadows,
A line of magical changes
          Of a lovely face,

In the smoky clouds, purple roses,
          The reflection of amber,
And kissing, and tears,
          And dawn, dawn!..

Word of the day

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 22:00:59 +0100

ночь
noch’
night

Related:

ночевать
nо́chevat’
to stay the night
Good night

Спокойной ночи
spokо́inoi nochi

Example sentences:

Почему-то, по ночам я бодрее.
For some reason I feel more alive at night.

Ночь была такой прохладной, что, когда я вернулся, я почти замёрз.
The night was so chilly that when I returned I was almost frozen.

Прошлой ночью мне приснился странный сон.
Last night I had a weird dream.

wewereledtoleadlovers replied to your post: mikkelsened replied to your post: привет,...

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 16:17:00 +0100

wewereledtoleadlovers replied to your post: mikkelsened replied to your post: привет, я…

Also, does учить not govern the dative?

I wrote up a post on the equivalents of ‘to learn’ and ‘to study’ in Russian a while back. (And then promptly forgot it all, evidently.) Anyway, from what I gather, the dative is used when the meaning is ‘to teach’:
учить + dat. = to teach

e.g. Я учу английскому языку I teach English

Я учу сестру немецкому языку I teach my sister German

Я учу петь студентку I teach my student to sing
учить + acc. = to learn or memorise
e.g. Я учу русский язык I learn Russian (at school)
учить + acc. anim. = to teach somebody
e.g. Я учу студентов I teach students

But maybe you’re thinking of the reflexive form, учиться?
e.g. Я учусь русскому языку I learn (teach myself) Russian

on the subject of good study resources, i also recomend studyblue! it's simply designed, free, and it has an app so you can study any of your cards/lists on the go. i have thousands of russian flashcards on it and it's worked wonders at uni!

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 16:05:51 +0100

Thanks for your contribution! Here’s the link.

mikkelsened replied to your post: привет, я итальянка студентка. я учится русский язык в...

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 16:04:11 +0100

mikkelsened replied to your post: привет, я итальянка студентка. я учится русский язык в университете :) твой блог очень красивой и полезный :)

Actually it’s not ‘учусь’ in her case, it’s ‘учу’. And in your reply, it’s not ‘вы решила учиться’ but rather ‘ты решила учить’ or ‘вы решили учить’

Yes, or perhaps ‘я изучаю руссий язык’ might be better as she’s at university.
You’re right, a month on holiday and my brain’s already turned to mush! Thanks for your corrections!

I just saw your post about google phrasebook, it's certainly improvement to what it offered before, but they still have so many issues with that service, this improvement doesn't even scratch it. Anyway, I'm curious, do you use anki? It's flash card software for spaced repetition, very useful for languages I find, it does take some getting used to, but once you do, it beats both google phrasebook and excel by far. P.S. it's freeware

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 15:52:58 +0100

Woops, sorry for my late reply. (See this post.)
I’m aware many followers on this blog are wary of any kind of translation-related service provided by Google, and quite right too, but it’s another resource that’s there if anyone wants to use it.
I haven’t heard of Anki, but from what I’ve seen just now, it looks a little like Memrise, which is another pretty popular flashcard site.

привет, я итальянка студентка. я учится русский язык в университете :) твой блог очень красивой и полезный :)

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 15:42:00 +0100

EDIT:
(*изучаю)

Привет!

Я очень рада, что вы решили учиться русский язык в университете! Спасибо за ваше сообщение!

I love how much appreciation this blog has been getting recently! You really are a god-send!

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 15:36:10 +0100

My motivation to keep this blog running is people like you, Anon! Thank you all for your messages!

I hope it's all right to bother you with an ask, because I need an authority on Russian grammar! I want a tattoo from Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita, but I need to double and triple check that I have it correct before I put ink to skin. The quote is as follows: "Он не заслужил света, он заслужил покой." It is supposed to translate to "He has not earned light, he has earned peace." I just wanted to check if this is grammatically correct! Thank you for your time!

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 15:35:00 +0100

Gosh, I’m not really qualified enough to be called an ‘authority on Russian grammar’, but hopefully native people will be able to spot any mistakes I miss! Anyway, it sounds right to me! (‘Заслуживать/заслужить’ can also mean ‘to deserve’ or ‘to merit’, just so you know.)

Is russian your second language? And if it isn't, how did you learn and how challenging was it to learn? Thanks for your time!!

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 15:31:07 +0100

It’s my third/fourth language, I’ve been studying it for a number of years now (at school and now at university) and it’s still quite a challenge, but I guess that’s why I enjoy it so much!

as a native speaker i have to say - well done! удачи в дальнейшем изучении русского! :D

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 15:29:35 +0100

Спасибо большое!

Hi! Can you help me translate this, Google Translate is giving me a headache. "И кого ты ко мне ревнуешь?" Google says it means "And who are you to me jealous" but that makes no sense... Thank you for any help you can offer me.

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 15:29:16 +0100

I think it means “And you’re jealous of my relationship with whom?”
The construction is ревновать + genitive (to be jealous of somebody).
Word Reference gives the following example:
он ревну́ет меня́ к своему́ бра́ту he is jealous of my relationship with his brother.

Hope that helps!

Word of the day

Sat, 15 Jun 2013 22:00:59 +0100

час
chas

(singular) hour, o’clock, time
Кото́рый час? — What time is it?
В кото́ром часу́? — At what time?
час — one o’clock
час но́чи — one a.m.
пе́рвый час — one o’clock

в час — at one o’clock
оди́н час — one hour
ва часа́ — two o’clock; two hours
в два часа́ — at two o’clock
(plural) hours, o’clock
пять часо́в — five o’clock; five hours
(plural) clock, watch
на мои́х часа́х — by my watch
У моего бра́та не́сколько часо́в — My brother has several watches.
Эти часы́ не иду́т — This clock/watch doesn’t work.

Word of the day

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 22:01:00 +0100

только
tól’ko
only

Related:

не то́лько …, но и … — not only … but also …

как то́лько — as soon as

лишь то́лько — no sooner … than

едва́ то́лько — no sooner … than

то́лько бы — if only

то́лько что — just; just now

Example sentences:

Прошлое можно только знать, но не изменять. Будущее можно только изменять, но не знать.
The past can only be known, not changed. The future can only be changed, not known.

Мне не надо было поливать цветы. Как только я закончил, начался дождь.
I needn’t have watered the flowers. Just after I finished it started raining.

Word of the day

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 22:01:03 +0100

спать/поспать
spat’/pospát’
to sleep

Example sentences:

Мне пора идти спать.
It’s time for me to go and sleep.

Мне нужно идти спать.
I have to go and sleep.

Я сделал уроки и хочу пойти спать, но мне уже снова пора идти в школу.
I finished the homework, and want to go to bed, but now it’s time to go to school again.

Word of the day

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 22:01:06 +0100

завтракать/позавтракать
závtrakat’/pozávtrakat’
to have breakfast

Example sentence:

Тебе следует завтракать каждый день.
You should have breakfast every day.

Word of the day

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 22:00:51 +0100

картина
kartína
painting, canvas, movie, film, picture, image

Example sentences:

Я читал только фрагменты новостей в Интернете, однако, ну, уяснил общую картину.
I’m only reading the scraps on news on the Internet, but, well, I get the general picture.

Это та самая картина, которую вы нарисовали сами?
Is this a picture that you yourself drew?

Word of the day

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 22:00:43 +0100

полный
pólnȳĭ
1. full, complete, absolute, perfect
2. stout, chubby

Example sentences:

Она несла корзину полную цветов.
She was carrying a basket full of flowers.

Человек, открывший дверь и вошедший внутрь, оказался полным незнакомцем.
The person who opened the door and came in was an utter stranger.

Мы постарались использовать наши возможности по полной.
We tried to make the most of our chances.