Tag Archives: learn Russian
Power Up, Down, and Out Posted by yelena on Jun 6, 2012
Have you had a power outage lately? If you have, then you probably have a story to share about living by candlelight and having to grill all those hamburgers you had in the freezer. Would you like to know how say all that in Russian? First thing first, let’s start with “power outage”. You…
Just a Bit About Fruits Posted by yelena on May 17, 2012
As promised, it’s time to talk fruits and berries. Of course, since this is not a gardening blog, but a blog about Russian language and culture, instead of growing advice there will be lots of useful phrases and expressions. Ready? First, the word фрукт itself is interesting. Its main meaning is “fruit”, but when…
TGIF Posted by yelena on May 4, 2012
TGIF! Are you ready for выходные (weekend)? But first, if you are curious, Thanks God It’s Friday translates into Russian as слава богу, уже пятница. (The poster above explains that nighttime is not the reason to stop work) How was your work week? Are you устал, как собака (dog-tired)? It’s probably because you пахал…
Celebrating Russian Easter Posted by yelena on Apr 11, 2012
Let’s hope that all of us are done with taxes. This leaves us with just one problem to solve – what to do with hundreds of plastic eggs we have left over from Easter. So let’s tackle this problem and learn a bit about Easter in the process (and if you don’t celebrate Easter, you…
Particle -ка and How to Use It Posted by yelena on Apr 4, 2012
As you’ve realized by now, my previous post about the letter Ё being removed from the alphabet was just первоапрельская утка (April Fool’s spoof). What шутки (jokes) did you play on your friends this year? What kind of розыгрыши (pranks) did they try to pull on you? This year, one of the spoofs prepared by…
Woman’s Work – Part 2 Posted by yelena on Mar 19, 2012
I am pretty sure that most Russians over 30 are familiar with the opening lines of Gianni Rodari’s poem Чем пахнут ремёсла (What jobs smell like): У каждого дела Запах особый (Each trade Has its special smell) This short poem mentions quite a few jobs, all using masculine nouns – маляр (painter), стекольщик (windows installer)…
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…