The Word's Worth

The words for things that shut out sound and let you hear it are the same in Russian. Of course they are.

It's hard to know where general language ends and criminal slangs begins.

The joy of particles (not).

What you say when you bribe depends on whether you want something or they want something.

The preposition "c" has some weird constructions.

When a person eats his teeth, is that bad or good? Or even possible?

What happened last week is a changing story that depends on speaker, day, mood and the subjunctive.

If you thought you knew the names of the months in Russian, think again.

This week Russia celebrated Russia Day. If you have no idea what that holiday is, join the gang.

Сбор and сборы are unusual words: sometimes the singular and plural forms have unrelated meanings.

Oh, those false friends... every translator's nightmare.

Using the right verb and the right case to express changing and exchanging is a big headache.

Sitting on stumps, falling out of trees and stepping in rotten logs figure prominently in Russian expressions.

Cats are popular pets In Russia but unpopular in folk expressions.

The confusing terminology of conscripts, reservists and draft dodgers.

Oh, the joy of little Russian words.

How some Russian words change meaning in and out of church.

All about things and people that pass by, pass through, and ought to pass off forever.

Understanding teenagers is a struggle that makes you cringe.

How you can spend a day translating three words.

How everyone from gangsters to presidents keep people calm and in their place.

How can I say something? Let me count the ways.

A new set of language norms have taken hold in Russia.

Russian ears are more athletic than English ears.

Trips with goals, aimless travels, and all-inclusive tourist packages.

A few thoughts on new being old or next or just the same old thing over and over again.

How to remember and how to forget are good skills to have whatever your language.

How to remember and how to forget are good skills to have whatever your language.

Russian legislators keep making laws to keep Russian pure. It's not working.

The annual Words of the Year compendium is dark, bleak and brutal.

Fierce, furious and furry - that's you when you're mad.

Take two little words - хлеб (bread) and соль (salt) - put them together and get something grand.

How do you say chaos in Russian? Let me count the ways.

NewSpeak, new letters and a new level of crude language used by the Russian elite.

The fine art of admitting your mistakes in Russian.

From the annals of punctuation and typographical history.

What were they shouting on Red Square and should we worry?

Happy talk in Russian media sources. "Negative growth" and lots of "stability."

What they say and what they mean are two very different things.

Why did King Charles III get a different name in Russian?

If you had a Russian dog or a dog in Russia, what would you name it? The fascinating world of Russian dog names, old and new.

The preposition "на" is the super glue of Russian sentences.

Russians get tired of answering "how are you?" So they get creative. And sometimes snarky.

When the first step is the hardest — also evil, clever, daring, wild, turbulent, smart, artistic, and jaunty.

When language changes we don't like it. But language doesn't care. And neither do speakers!

Judging by the language, eating the Russian way means really digging in.

Losing weight the Russian way involves sitting - what could be better?

Everyone needs to know how to grumble, lisp, burble, gurgle, growl and bellyache.

How you can go around the corner, go crazy, pop in and like something with just one Russian verb.

Here's a little something to keep your strength up in dark times.