Svetlana Flemming - Colloquial Russian - The Next Step in Language Learning

Intransitive verbs may be used with a passive meaning:

Granićy plo´xo oxranq´[tsq.

Borders are badly protected.

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Granićy bu´dut ukreplq´t;sq.

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The borders will be strengthened.

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Contrast:

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Rossi´q plo´xo oxranqét granićy.

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Russia protects her borders badly.

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Rossi´q bu´det ukreplq´t; granićy.

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Russia will strengthen her borders.

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The reflexive is an alternative to the third person plural as a way of 1

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expressing the passive:

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Plo´xo oxranq´[t granićy.

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Borders are badly protected.

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Bu´dut ukreplq´t; granićy.

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Borders will be strengthened.

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Some reflexive verbs indicate reciprocal actions:

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Oni´ pocelovaĺis;.

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They kissed (one another).

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Not all verbs ending in -sq have an obvious reflexive or passive 4

meaning: stanovi´t;sq ‘to become’; stara´t;sq ‘to try’.

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Exercise 5

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Select the appropriate verb.

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1 Be´'ency (na´hali / nahaliś;) pribyva´t; v Rossi´[ v 90-e go´dy.

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2 Dver; (otkryĺa / otkryĺas;). 3 Moj prognoź (opravdaĺ /

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opravdaĺsq). 4 Le´kciq (konhaét / konhaétsq) v 4 hasa´. 5 Za 4

posle´dnie dni prezideńt Buw (ulu´hwil / ulu´hwilsq) svoj 5

re´jting. 6

Hisloímmigrańtov vse¨

vre´mq (uveli´hivaet /

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uveli´hivaetsq). 7

Vlast; prezideńta (ukrepiĺa / ukrepiĺas;).

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8 Pravi´tel;stvo (sokratiĺo / sokratiĺos;) rasxo´dy na obrazovańie.

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Uroven; 'iźni (povyśil / povyśilsq). 10

Diskuśsiq

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(prodol'aét / prodol'aétsq). 11

Ka´'dyj ve´her studeńty

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(sobira´[t / sobira´[tsq) v klu´be. 12

On (końhil / końhilsq)

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govori´t;.

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Migration

Exercise 6

Read the following report from the ‘Moscow News’, July 2001.

Posle raspada Sovetskogo so[za v Rossi[ iz stran SNG i Baltii pribylo 8 millionov migrantov. Liw; desqtu[ hast; iz nix –

800 tysqh – gosudarstvo kak-to obnade'ilo, prisvoiv status. Za vse gody tol;ko 22 tysqhi semej poluhili 'il;e i 98 tysqh migrantov poluhili mizernye vozvratnye ssudy. V qnvare 2001 goda v oheredi na 'il;e ostavalis; 69 tysqh semej (iz nix 17 tysqh – slaboza]i]ennye) i 32 tysqhi helovek 'dali ssudy.

N.B. vozvra´tnaq ssu´da – loan; slaboza]i]e¨nnyj – vulnerable; kak-to –

somehow, somewhat; obnade¨'it; – to reassure; prisvoít; status – to confer status

From the information in the report above answer the following questions in English.

1 How many migrants arrived in Russia after the collapse of the Soviet Union?

2 What is their situation in Russia?

3 How many families were housed?

4 How many families were given loans?

5 What was the waiting list for housing in January 2001?

Language points ♦

Ordinal numerals

Ordinal numerals are adjectives which agree with the noun they describe. Only the last element of a compound ordinal numeral is an adjective and it is the only element which changes its ending. Earlier elements are cardinal numbers: na dva´dcat; hetve¨rtom meśte ‘ in twenty-fourth place’. All ordinal numerals decline as regular hard adjectives, with the exception of tre´tij, whose declension is in the grammar summary.

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Dates

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The following examples show how ordinal numbers are used to 3

express dates in Russian:

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peŕvoe ma´q

the 1st of May

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peŕvogo ma´q

on the 1st of May

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dvuxty

śqhnyj god

the year 2000

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v dve ty

śqhi peŕvom godu´

in 2001

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k dve ty

śqhi hetve¨rtomu go´du

by 2004

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peŕvogo ma´q dvuxty

śqhnogo go´da

on the 1st of May 2000

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zakoń ot dvadca´togo ma´q

law of the 20th May

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v dvadca´tom ve´ke / stole´tii

in the twentieth century

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