Archive for 'Russian for beginners'
Russian No-nouns Posted by yelena on Jan 31, 2012
This post’s idea comes from Richard who mentioned that he was confused by the noun нежить (lit: the undead) that he encountered reading Nabokov’s story “The Wood Sprite”. Indeed, the noun нежить (undead) sounds exactly like the verb нежить (to pamper), but the meanings of the two words couldn’t be more different. False cognates…
What Your Russian Spouse Calls You (When You Are Not Listening) Posted by yelena on Jan 12, 2012
Ever wonder what your Russian spouse, girlfriend or boyfriend is talking about on the phone? Are they talking about you? First of all, it’s safe to assume that a phone call you have overheard is not all about you. The only exception is if it’s your Russian wife calling her лучшая подруга (best friend) or…
Top New Year Resolutions in Russian Posted by yelena on Jan 3, 2012
Do you know that there are THREE Russian-language versions of the “Jingle Bells” song? In addition to the more grown-up version from the video above, here are the texts of two more. Three days into новый год (the new year), how are you doing with your новогодние решения (New Year resolutions) also known as новогодние…
Most Popular Posts in 2011 and Plans for 2012 Posted by yelena on Dec 28, 2011
With just a few more days до конца года (left in the year), this is a good time for обзор проделанной работы (review of the work done). So how do you feel about your progress with learning Russian? This might sound strange, but I certainly feel that my Russian has improved since I started…
Let’s Make Фонарик (a Lantern) For the Holidays Posted by yelena on Dec 23, 2011
If you celebrate Christmas and New Year, then you have already украсили ёлку (decorated the Christmas tree). Still, there’s always room for just one more ornament, isn’t there? That’s why today я научу вас (I will teach you) how to make a very simple украшение (an ornament) that even children can make за несколько минут…
How to Decorate the New Year’s Tree Posted by yelena on Dec 21, 2011
I don’t know about you, but конец декабря (the end of December) is always the busiest time for me. It’s all about getting ready for Новый Год (the New Year), мой любимый праздник (my favorite holiday). At first I wasn’t going to write about празднование Нового Года (celebrating the New Year) since we already covered…
Time to Learn Russian Declensions Posted by yelena on Dec 19, 2011
Do you remember the Gender of Russian Nouns post that appeared a few weeks ago? It generated the record number of comments and all of them contributed to the subject. So if, after reading the post itself, you have more questions than answers, then do check out the comments. Here’s the thing though… I originally…