Do you ever find yourself reading an article in Russian on a hip website and seeing a word that doesn’t seem to make sense even after you look it up? This post will look at some expressions that have cropped up or taken on new meanings recently. I will include examples from various Telegram channels. I am not endorsing these examples — they simply illustrate how certain words are used. The author’s spelling and punctuation have been preserved.

1. Топи́ть за кого-то

literal meaning: to drown someone, to sink something

additional meaning: to support someone, to root for something, to “stan”

examples:

В то вре́мя как мы наоборо́т то́пим за вся́ческую фина́нсовую незави́симость же́нщин и за отме́ну запрещённых профе́ссий.

[Whereas we are pushing for all kinds of financial independence for women and the cancellation of [gender-based] bans on certain occupations.]

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2. Мути́ть/замути́ть

origin: the adjective мутный means “murky”

literal meaning: to muddy (the water)

additional meaning: to start something or set something up, like a shady operation or something more innocuous like a get-together or a relationship

examples:

Исто́рия деся́тков аге́нтов, где же́нщинам предпи́сывалось игра́ть лу́чших подру́г, кварти́рных хозя́ек, а мужчи́нам — соблазни́ть и замути́ть бли́зкие отноше́ния.

[[This is the story] of dozens of agents, where women were cast to play [the heroine’s] best friends and landladies, and men, to seduce her and get intimate.]

(Source)

3. Бомбить: (у) кого-то бомбит

origin: бомба, a bomb

literal meaning: to bomb something

additional meaning: someone can’t even with something, something drives someone insane, someone sees red

examples:

О́чень мно́го произведе́ний, напи́санных мужчи́нами, и по́сле того́, как узна́ешь дово́льно мно́го о фемини́зме, бодипозитиве, от не́которых произведе́ний начина́ет немно́го бомби́ть.

[There are many literary works written by men, so after you learn a lot about feminism and body positivity, some works make you see red.]

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4. Ла́мповый

origin: лампа, a lamp

literal meaning: referring to a lamp

additional meaning: vintage, rustic, quaint

examples:

Е́сли вы быва́ли в Берли́не, то зна́ете, что неме́цкая столи́ца – го́род аналоговый, го́род “ла́мповый”, э́то после́дняя европе́йская столи́ца доцифровой эпо́хи.

[If you’ve been to Berlin, you know that the German capital is an analog and “rustic” city; it’s the last remaining capital of the pre-digital age in Europe.]

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5. Зашква́р

origin: from criminal/prison slang “зашквариться” — to humiliate yourself, e.g. by touching something dirty

additional meaning: something shameful or embarrassing

examples:

Перево́ды появля́ются по не́сколько в день (э́то плюс), но рекла́ма на са́йте про́сто зашквар (ми́нус).

[Translations are posted a few times a day (that’s a plus), but there is an ungodly number of ads on the website (that’s a minus).]

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