Derek Offord - Using Russian - A Guide to Contemporary Usage

He leapt on to the roof .

Oн – стукв стeкло´.

He knocked on the window .

Oни´ – шмыгв тeнь.

They nipped into the shadow .

5.6

Vulgar language

This section must be prefaced by a triple warning. Firstly, the foreign student should be aware that no matter how good one’s command of

another people’s language one may strike a discordant note or even

give offence to a native speaker if one falls into very familiar registers in general and the vulgar register in particular. Secondly, it cannot be overemphasised that a vulgar word may have a greater impact in the

Russian context than does its English lexical equivalent (even though 190

5.6

Vulgar language

the same anatomical features and sentiments are involved), since the English word occurs in a society that uses such vocabulary, for better or for worse, with relative freedom. Thirdly, it should be understood that whereas in Britain vulgar language may nowadays be used as freely by women as by men, in Russia the use of such language by a woman is

likely to shock both men and women more than the use of that

language by a man. The foreign student of Russian should therefore

avoid using vulgar language if he, or especially she, wishes to win

acceptance in any sort of ‘polite’ Russian society.

On the other hand, with the sudden influx into Russia of things

Western, including pornography, vulgar language is a reality of Russian life that foreign students are much more likely to encounter now than they would have been in Soviet times. It has also found its way on a large scale into serious literature, including works published in Russia as well as those published abroad by e´migreś. The introduction of

vulgar language into works of art may be traced to the brief thaw under Khrushcho´v. Vulgar words occur, for example, in Solzhen´ıtsyn’s Oдu´н

дeнь Ивa´нa Дeнu´совичa ( A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich ). In the age of glásnost and the post-Soviet era such language has come to be widely used with great freedom in the works of writers such as Aleshk óvskii, Vened´ıkt Eroféev, Lim ónov, Nárbikova, Petrushévskaia, Evgénii Pop óv and Z´ınik, some of whom, it should be noted, are women, and many

of whom are writers of literary note. The foreign student may

therefore usefully acquire a passive knowledge of this area of language.

The word meaning foul language , мaт, is derived from мaть, mother , expressions of abuse towards one’s mother being the most offensive sort of obscenity. Further expressions of the same origin include мa´тeрный

язы´кand мaтeрщи´нa(which also mean foul language ) and the verbs мaтeри´ться, to use foul language , and мaтюкa´ться, to eff and blind .

A small selection of the very numerous obscenities available to the

Russian-speaker is given below.

блeвa´ть(блюю´, блюёшь)

to puke

eбa´ть(eбу´, eбёшь; past tense

to fuck ; also to curse, discipline

ёб, eбли´)

severely

отъeби´сь от мeня´

fuck off

e´бля

fucking (noun)

взъёбкa

a bollocking

ёбaный

fucking (adj)

eбa´ться счeм-н

to fuck about with sth

зaёбa(m and f )

pain-in-the-arse

ёб твою´ мaть

fucking (as epithet; lit fuck your

mother )

трa´хaть/трa´хнуть(less vulg

to screw, bonk

than eбa´ть)

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5

Vocabulary and idiom

пи´сaть(пи´сaю,

to piss

пи´сaeшь) /попи´сaть

ссaть(ссу, ссышь)/ поссa´ть

to piss

отливa´ть/отли´ть

to have a piss, take a leak

жо´пa(dimin жо´пкa)

arse

жополи´з

arse-licker

бздeть(бзжу, бздишь)

to fart (silently), foul the air,

bullshit; to shit oneself , i.e. to be

afraid

бздун

fart (weak person), coward

пeрдe´ть(пeрди´т)/ пёрнуть

to fart

пeрдёж

farting

пeрду´н

farter, old fart

срaть(сру, срёшь)/ нaсрa´ть

to shit

eму´ нaсрa´ть

he doesn’t give a shit

зaсрa´нeц

arse-hole, shit (i.e. person)

обсирa´ть/обосрa´тького´-н

to shit all over sb (fig)

дeрьмо´

crap, dung (also person)

говно´

shit

говню´к

shit (bag) (i.e. person)

пиздa´

cunt

пи´здить/спи´здить

to swipe, nick, steal

хуй(dimin хуёк)

prick (also person)

ни хуя´

fuck all

пошёл нa´ хуй

fuck off

хeр

= хуй

ни хeрa´

= ни хуя´

хуйня´

shit (nonsense, rubbish)

хeрня´

= хуйня´

хуёвый

lousy, fucking awful

хeро´вый

= хуёвый

мудa´к

arsehole (person)

мудня´

bollocks (nonsense)

дрочи´лa(m and f )

wanker

дрочи´ть

to masturbate

сво´лочь(f )

swine, bastard

блядь(f )

whore ; also used as exclamation:

sod it!

ку´рвa

tart

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5.7

Idioms

5.7

Idioms

An idiom is an expression peculiar to a particular language. It may have a rough equivalent in another language, but its meaning may not be

readily apparent to a foreigner or even logically explicable.

Russian is particularly rich in its stock of idiomatic expressions,

which are a source of pride to native speakers. These expressions lend colour and vitality to a speaker’s language and appropriate use of them enhances the speaker’s authority.

The idioms given in this section are widely used in modern

Russian. While many of them are colloquial, they may well be

deployed in the literary language and in R3c as well as in everyday

speech in order to impart vitality, vividness and even an air of authentic national distinctiveness. On the other hand they are unlikely to be