{"id":988,"date":"2010-06-25T18:57:44","date_gmt":"2010-06-25T18:57:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/?p=988"},"modified":"2010-06-25T19:23:15","modified_gmt":"2010-06-25T19:23:15","slug":"meet-the-verb-%c2%ab%d1%81%d0%be%d0%b1%d0%b8%d1%80%d0%b0%d1%82%d1%8c%d1%81%d1%8f%c2%bb","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/meet-the-verb-%c2%ab%d1%81%d0%be%d0%b1%d0%b8%d1%80%d0%b0%d1%82%d1%8c%d1%81%d1%8f%c2%bb\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet the Verb: \u00ab\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430\u0442\u044c\u0441\u044f\u00bb!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Maybe somewhere in between all the recent posts by Yelena on our blog \u2013 as well as Vickie\u2019s excellent guest post two days ago \u2013 you might have asked yourselves: \u00ab<\/strong>\u0410 <\/strong>\u0433\u0434\u0435 <\/strong>\u0436\u0435 <\/strong>\u0414\u0436\u043e\u0437\u0435\u0444\u0438<\/span>\u043d\u0430?!\u00bb <\/strong>[\u201cBut where is Josefina?!\u201d] I know there\u2019s been a significant gap without me posting here about the wondrous world of Russian grammar (and we all know how hard it is to live for a day without learning something new and exiting about everyone\u2019s favorite language!)<\/em>, but I have a reason for this \u2013 and believe me, it\u2019s a good one! Right now \u00ab<\/strong>\u044f <\/strong>\u0432\u0441\u0451 <\/strong>\u0435\u0449\u0451<\/span> <\/strong>\u0432 <\/strong>\u0415\u043a\u0430\u0442\u0435\u0440\u0438\u043d\u0431\u0443<\/span>\u0440\u0433\u0435\u00bb<\/strong> [I\u2019m still in Yekaterinburg], but let me tell you \u00ab<\/strong>\u0433\u0434\u0435 <\/strong>\u044f <\/strong>\u0431\u044b\u043b\u0430<\/span>\u00bb <\/strong>[where I was] a week before this: \u00ab<\/strong>\u044f <\/strong>\u0441\u044a\u0435<\/span>\u0437\u0434\u0438\u043b\u0430 <\/strong>\u0432 <\/strong>\u041c\u043e\u0441\u043a\u0432\u0443<\/span> <\/strong>\u0438 <\/strong>\u0432 <\/strong>\u0412\u043e<\/span>\u043b\u043e\u0433\u0434\u0443<\/a>\u00bb <\/strong>[I went (traveled)<\/em> to Moscow and Vologda<\/a>]. What did I do there, then? I thought that today I would tell you first about my trip \u00ab<\/strong>\u0432 <\/strong>\u0435\u0432\u0440\u043e\u043f\u0435<\/span>\u0439\u0441\u043a\u0443\u044e <\/strong>\u0447\u0430\u0441\u0442\u044c <\/strong>\u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0439\u0441\u043a\u043e\u0439 <\/strong>\u0444\u0435\u0434\u0435\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0446\u0438\u0438\u00bb <\/strong>[to the European part of Russian Federation] by way of a couple of informative pictures. After that I\u2019ll explain why I have chosen this particular post to introduce one of the most mysterious verbs of the Russian language: \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u044c\u0441\u044f\u00bb<\/strong> [impfv.<\/em> 1)<\/strong> to gather, assemble; 2)<\/strong> to prepare, get ready; 3)<\/strong> to be gathering, be in the offing; 4)<\/strong> to intend to; 5)<\/strong> to be about to]. Yes, this marvelous little verb has no less than five possible connotations and plausible ways of being translated into English! Aren\u2019t you exited now to find out what makes this particular verb perfect for what I am about to do in less than three days: \u00ab<\/strong>\u0443\u0435<\/span>\u0445\u0430\u0442\u044c <\/strong>\u0438\u0437 <\/strong>\u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [to leave Russia]?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The Russians themselves say that it is a sure sign you\u2019re \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u0438\u0437 <\/em><\/strong>\u043f\u0440\u043e\u0432\u0438<\/span>\u043d\u0446\u0438\u0438\u00bb<\/em><\/strong> [from the province] if the first thing you do when in Moscow is \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u043f\u043e\u0439\u0442\u0438<\/span> <\/em><\/strong>\u043d\u0430 <\/em><\/strong>\u041a\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0441\u043d\u0443\u044e <\/em><\/strong>\u043f\u043b\u043e<\/span>\u0449\u0430\u0434\u044c\u00bb<\/em><\/strong> [to go to Red Square]. I\u2019m not ashamed to say that this is always what I do first thing when I\u2019m in the Russian \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u0441\u0442\u043e\u043b\u0438<\/span>\u0446\u0430\u00bb <\/em><\/strong>[capital] because I lived \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u0432\u0441\u044f <\/em><\/strong>\u043c\u043e\u044f<\/span> <\/em><\/strong>\u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u0430\u044f <\/em><\/strong>\u0436\u0438\u0437\u043d\u044c <\/em><\/strong>\u0432 <\/em><\/strong>\u043f\u0440\u043e\u0432\u0438<\/span>\u043d\u0446\u0438\u0438\u00bb <\/em><\/strong>[all of my Russian life in the province]\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

But this time I decided to do something I had never done before while in Moscow: \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u043f\u043e\u0441\u0435\u0442\u0438<\/span>\u0442\u044c <\/em><\/strong>\u043c\u0443\u0437\u0435<\/span>\u0439 <\/em><\/strong>\u0411\u0443\u043b\u0433\u0430<\/span>\u043a\u043e\u0432\u0430\u00bb<\/em><\/strong> [to visit the Bulgakov museum]. It\u2019s free! Here I am standing behind the door to \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u043a\u0432\u0430\u0440\u0442\u0438<\/span>\u0440\u0430 <\/em><\/strong>\u043d\u043e<\/span>\u043c\u0435\u0440 50 (<\/em><\/strong>\u043f\u044f\u0442\u044c\u0434\u0435\u0441\u044f<\/span>\u0442)\u00bb <\/em><\/strong>[apartment number 50], known in \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u041c\u0430<\/span>\u0441\u0442\u0435\u0440 <\/em><\/strong>\u0438 <\/em><\/strong>\u041c\u0430\u0440\u0433\u0430\u0440\u0438<\/span>\u0442\u0430\u00bb<\/em><\/strong> [\u201cThe Master and Margarita\u201d] as \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u043d\u0435\u0445\u043e\u0440\u043e<\/span>\u0448\u0430\u044f <\/em><\/strong>\u043a\u0432\u0430\u0440\u0442\u0438<\/span>\u0440\u0430\u00bb<\/em><\/strong> [a not good (or: bad) apartment]. On the top floor you can visit the apartment where Bulgakov lived, but the entrance costs money.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

After Moscow I took the train to Vologda, where I celebrated<\/a> the birthday of my most beloved Russian writer \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u0412\u0430\u0440\u043b\u0430<\/span>\u043c <\/em><\/strong>\u0422\u0438<\/span>\u0445\u043e\u043d\u043e\u0432\u0438\u0447 <\/em><\/strong><\/a>\u0428\u0430\u043b\u0430<\/span>\u043c\u043e\u0432<\/a>\u00bb<\/em><\/strong> [Varlam Tikhonovich Shalamov<\/a>] on the 18th<\/sup> of June at the Shalamov House<\/a> together with a group of young scholars from Moscow. The more attentive readers might remember that I first visited Vologda in January this year, and that this was also because of Shalamov. I try not to make all of my posts here on the blog about this writer \u2013 but sometimes he might slip in without me wanting it\u2026 \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u0427\u0442\u043e <\/em><\/strong>\u0434\u0435<\/span>\u043b\u0430\u0442\u044c? <\/em><\/strong>\u041e\u043d <\/em><\/strong>\u0436\u0435 <\/em><\/strong>\u0432\u0435\u043b\u0438<\/span>\u043a\u0438\u0439 <\/em><\/strong>\u043f\u0438\u0441\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u0435\u043b\u044c!\u00bb<\/em><\/strong> [What can you do? He’s a great writer!].<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

While being so close to \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0439 <\/em><\/strong>\u0441\u0435<\/span>\u0432\u0435\u0440\u00bb<\/em><\/strong> [the Russian north], we decided to hop on a bus and travel for three hours further north and visit the small town of \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u041a\u0438\u0440\u0438<\/span>\u043b\u043b\u043e\u0432\u00bb<\/em><\/strong> [Kirillov]. From there we took a taxi to the village of \u00ab<\/strong><\/em>\u0424\u0435\u0440\u0430\u043f\u043e<\/span>\u043d\u0442\u00bb<\/em><\/strong> [Ferapont], where there\u2019s an amazingly beautiful monastery that\u2019s on UNESCO\u2019s list of world heritage. Why? Because it has intact frescos from the 14th<\/sup> century!<\/em><\/p>\n

Now I\u2019m back \u00ab<\/strong>\u043d\u0430 <\/strong>\u0423\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u043b\u0435\u00bb<\/strong> [in the Urals] once again, and right now \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u044e <\/strong>\u0441\u0432\u043e\u044e<\/span> <\/span><\/strong>\u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u0443\u044e <\/strong>\u0436\u0438\u0437\u043d\u044c\u00bb <\/strong>[I\u2019m gathering my Russian life]. It feels \u00ab<\/strong>\u0442\u0430\u043a <\/strong>\u0441\u0442\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u043d\u043d\u043e\u00bb<\/strong> [so strange] that I’m about to leave this country for just as long a period of time as I have spent living here \u2013 \u00ab<\/strong>\u0448\u0435\u0441\u0442\u044c <\/strong>\u043b\u0435\u0442\u00bb<\/strong> [six years]. It goes without saying that I am now very different from the nineteen year old girl I was when I arrived in \u00ab<\/strong>\u0421\u0430\u043d\u043a\u0442-<\/strong>\u041f\u0435\u0442\u0435\u0440\u0431\u0443<\/span>\u0440\u0433\u00bb<\/strong> [Saint Petersburg] in August 2004. Yes, I\u2019m \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u0442\u0430<\/span>\u0440\u0448\u0435\u00bb<\/strong> [older], \u00ab<\/strong>\u043e<\/span><\/strong>\u043f\u044b\u0442\u043d\u0435\u0435\u00bb<\/strong> [more experienced] and \u00ab<\/strong>\u0443\u043c\u043d\u0435<\/span>\u0435\u00bb<\/strong> [smarter]. And it feels \u00ab<\/strong>\u0435\u0449\u0451<\/span> <\/strong>\u0441\u0442\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u043d\u043d\u0435\u0435\u00bb<\/strong> [even stranger] to think of this country now and try \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u044c\u0441\u044f <\/strong>\u0441 <\/strong>\u043c\u044b<\/span>\u0441\u043b\u044f\u043c\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [to collect my thoughts] about what Russia have come to mean to me through the years. There\u2019s too much to say, too much that\u2019s on my heart, in my mind \u2013 and yet \u00ab<\/strong>\u0442\u0430\u043a <\/strong>\u043d\u0435 <\/strong>\u0445\u0432\u0430\u0442\u0430<\/span>\u0435\u0442 <\/strong>\u0441\u043b\u043e\u0432!\u00bb<\/strong> [there aren’t enough words!]. Of course, I wouldn\u2019t be who I am today \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0435\u0437 <\/strong>\u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [without Russia], \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0435\u0437 <\/strong>\u0440\u0443<\/span>\u0441\u0441\u043a\u043e\u0433\u043e <\/strong>\u043e<\/span><\/strong>\u043f\u044b\u0442\u0430\u00bb<\/strong> [without (my)<\/em> Russian experience], \u00ab<\/strong>\u0431\u0435\u0437 <\/strong>\u043e<\/span><\/strong>\u043f\u044b\u0442\u0430 <\/strong>\u0436\u0438<\/span>\u0437\u043d\u0438 <\/strong>\u0438 <\/strong>\u0432\u044b\u0436\u0438\u0432\u0430<\/span>\u043d\u0438\u044f <\/strong>\u0432 <\/strong>\u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438<\/span>\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [without the experience of (lit. life)<\/em> living and surviving in Russia]. I once heard a foreigner \u2013 who had lived and worked in Russia for several years \u2013 say that he could write a book about every week he spent in Russia. I don\u2019t know who would read such a book; but I know I could also do that \u00a0\u2013 easily! But the thing about life is that most things become apparent, clear and comprehensible to us only \u00ab<\/strong>\u0432 <\/strong>\u0441\u0440\u0430\u0432\u043d\u0435<\/span>\u043d\u0438\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [in comparison] and \u00ab<\/strong>\u043d\u0430 <\/strong>\u0440\u0430\u0441\u0441\u0442\u043e\u044f<\/span>\u043d\u0438\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [from a distance]. And the best distance of all is \u00ab<\/strong>\u0432\u0440\u0435<\/span>\u043c\u044f\u00bb<\/strong> [time]. I had to live a couple of years in Russia before I understood what inside of me is Swedish; i.e. what has its source in my nationality, my cultural heritage and upbringing \u2013 and what is simply me. That’s why I think it is still too early for me now to say just WHAT I’ll bring with me from this country. \u00ab<\/strong>\u0421 <\/strong>\u0433\u043e\u0434\u0430<\/span>\u043c\u0438\u00bb<\/strong> [with the years] I’ll come to realize what part of me is Russian\u2026 For already now I know that I\u2019m partly Russian. One cannot live for this long in a foreign country without making it your own and yourself a part of it. If you can, then you\u2019re not doing the whole immigration thing right!<\/p>\n

The past couple of days I have done little else but dedicate myself completely to the verb \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u044c\u0441\u044f\u00bb<\/strong>: here in the sense of ‘getting ready’<\/em>. But \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u044c\u0441\u044f\u00bb<\/strong> can also mean \u2018to intend to\u2019<\/em>, and thus the sentence \u00ab<\/strong>\u044f <\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u044e\u0441\u044c <\/strong>\u0443\u0435<\/span>\u0445\u0430\u0442\u044c\u00bb<\/strong> may translate into ‘I’m planning to leave’<\/em> but also ‘I intend to leave’<\/em>. The first sentence indicates a very direct plan to do something; the second one not so much. It only states a wish, perhaps an intention \u2013 or maybe it was said with strong emotions and tomorrow \u2013 when sober \u2013 it will not mean anything. \u00ab<\/strong>\u0421\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u044c\u0441\u044f\u00bb<\/strong> is intentionally fuzzy and was probably made up by the Russians so as to confuse non-native speakers. The interesting thing about this verb is that it sometimes doesn\u2019t indicate any action at all (and we all know that we need verbs to tell people we\u2019re DOING something or other)<\/em>. That makes \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u044c\u0441\u044f\u00bb<\/strong> different from almost all other verbs in all other languages. For example, when Russians say \u00ab<\/strong>\u0421\u0435\u0439\u0447\u0430<\/span>\u0441 <\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0435\u043c\u0441\u044f\u00bb<\/strong> [Now we\u2019re getting ready] it doesn’t have to indicate any movement \u2013 it is often said and then followed by, for example, everyone remaining seated at the table and the host pouring you another glass. Or how about this dialogue:<\/p>\n

\u00ab\u041f\u043e\u0447\u0435\u043c\u0443<\/span> \u0442\u044b \u043d\u0435 \u043f\u0440\u0438\u0448\u0451<\/span>\u043b \u0432\u0447\u0435\u0440\u0430<\/span>?\u00bb<\/strong> [Why didn\u2019t you come yesterday?]<\/p>\n

\u00ab<\/strong>\u0421\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u043b\u0441\u044f <\/strong>\u043f\u0440\u0438\u0439\u0442\u0438<\/span>, <\/strong>\u0434\u0430 <\/strong>\u043d\u0435 <\/strong>\u043f\u043e\u043b\u0443\u0447\u0438<\/span>\u043b\u043e\u0441\u044c\u00bb<\/strong> [I planned to (intended to, was about to)<\/em> come, but it didn\u2019t work out].<\/p>\n

Really what this person did was not any action at all; and we will never find out exactly what his \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u043d\u0438\u0435\u00bb<\/strong> [‘getting ready’, \u2018intending’] constituted of. So what is the confused non-native speaker to do when confronted with such a strange verb as this one? The only good way to handle is to do as the Russians \u2013 use it to your advantage! How? For example, let\u2019s say you agreed to meet someone at a particular place at a particular time. Then you forgot all about it. The person calls you and you\u2019re already ten minutes late. What do you say? \u00ab<\/strong>\u0421\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u044e\u0441\u044c!\u00bb<\/strong> [I’m getting ready!] of course! It sounds like you\u2019re already half way there, when in reality you haven\u2019t even put on your shoes yet. This verb always saves the day when you haven\u2019t done something you\u2019re supposed to have done \u2013 you can always say \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0438\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u044e\u0441\u044c\u00bb<\/strong> and then continue sipping your tea.<\/p>\n

P.S. the perfect to this verb is \u00ab<\/strong>\u0441\u043e\u0431\u0440\u0430<\/span>\u0442\u044c\u0441\u044f\u00bb<\/strong> \ud83d\ude09 But do note that it is used much less frequently in colloquial speech!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

Maybe somewhere in between all the recent posts by Yelena on our blog \u2013 as well as Vickie\u2019s excellent guest post two days ago \u2013 you might have asked yourselves: \u00ab\u0410 \u0433\u0434\u0435 \u0436\u0435 \u0414\u0436\u043e\u0437\u0435\u0444\u0438\u043d\u0430?!\u00bb [\u201cBut where is Josefina?!\u201d] I know there\u2019s been a significant gap without me posting here about the wondrous world of Russian…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":994,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3,8,7827,7826],"tags":[1156,1248,8745,1381,1389,1403,1450,1476,1593,1670,1696,9694,9695],"class_list":["post-988","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","category-language","category-russian-life","category-when-in-russia","tag-moscow","tag-russian-language","tag-traveling-in-russia","tag-varlam-tikhonovich-shalamov","tag-vologda","tag-yekaterinburg","tag-1450","tag-1476","tag-1593","tag-1670","tag-1696","tag-9694","tag-9695"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/988","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=988"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/988\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1003,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/988\/revisions\/1003"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/994"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=988"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=988"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/russian\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=988"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}