Learn how to talk about your likes and dislikes
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| Hello and welcome to Russian Survival Phrases. This course is designed to equip you with the language skills and knowledge to enable you to get the most out of your visit to Russia. So join us for Russian Survival phrases. You will be surprised at how far a little Russian will go. |
| In today's lesson, we'll introduce you to a phrase that you'll need if you plan on stopping by to visit any friends in Russia. Today, we will provide you with the phrases needed to get inside and the replies you can expect to hear. |
| In Russian, “May I come in?” is “Mozhna vayti?” Mozhna vayti? Let`s break it down by syllable: mozh-na vay-ti. Now, let`s hear it once again: mozhna vayti. |
| The first word “mozhna” means “may”. Let`s break down this word and hear it one more time: mozh-na and mozhna. This is followed by “vayti”, which in English is “come in”: vay-ti and vayti. So, altogether we have “Mozhna vayti?”. Literally this means: “May come in?”. |
| It is grammatically correct to use pronoun “mne”, which is “I” in English. So, the phrase is “Mozhna mne vayti?”. But when you're alone and asking for a permission to enter, you do not need to use “mne”. When there is more than one person, then you should use “nas”, which is “us” in English. So, the phrase is “Mozhna nam vayti?”. Hopefully, after using this phrase, you will be invited in. If not, it's maybe time to make some new friends. |
| In Russian, “Please come in” is “Vaydite, pazhalusta”, Vaydite, pazhalusta. Let`s break it down by syllable: vay-di-te, pa-zha-lus-ta. Now, let`s hear it once again: vaydite, pazhalusta. |
| The first word “vaydite” means “come in”. Let`s break down this word and hear it one more time: vay-di-te and vaydite. This is followed by “pazhalusta”, which in English is “please”: pa-zha-lus-ta and pazhalusta. |
| So, altogether we have “Vaydite, pazhalusta”. Literally this means: “Come in, please”. Or, the answer can be shortened to “fkhadite”, which has the same meaning in English as the one we've learned. Even without “please” in the end, this word is polite because it has the “-te-” in the end. |
| In many households, it's generally a good idea to get a gift for your home visit. Anything will do, usually something small as a token of your appreciation. In Russian, “This is just a small gift” is “Eta malen'kiy padarak”. Eta malen'kiy padarak. Let`s break it down by syllable: e-ta ma-len'-kiy pa-da-rak. Now, let`s hear it once again: eta malen'kiy padarak. |
| The first word “eta” means “this”. Let`s break down this word and hear it one more time: e-ta and eta. This is followed by “malen'kiy”, which in Russian is “small”: ma-len'kiy and malen'kiy. So, to recap here we have: “eta malen'kiy”. Literally this means: “this small”. |
| Let's take a look at the next “padarak”, which means “present”: padarak. So, altogether we have “Eta malen'kiy padarak”. Literally, this means “This small gift”. |
| As we mentioned in one of the previous lessons, Russians tend to use English words in daily life. And if you want to wrap the present with a sense of humor, just say “Eta malen'kiy present vam”, which means “This is a small present for you”. Never try to apologize when passing a present. In Russia you do not need to buy anything impressive such as a Lamborghini or a villa on Sunset Beach as a present. A box of chocolate or candies, a bottle of wine, or fruits are enough. If you're sure about the taste of the host and his or her interest, it is fine to purchase some item. Still for Russians, the best present is a visitor with whom they can have a nice conversation. |
| To close out today`s lesson we'd like for you to practice what we`d just learnt. I will provide you with the English equivalent of the phrase and you are responsible for saying it aloud. You'll have a few seconds before I`ll give you the answer. Udachi! That means “good luck”! Ok, here we go! |
| May I come in?……..Mozhna vayti? |
| Come in, please ……..Vaydite, pazhalusta |
| This is just a small gift…...Eta malen'kiy padarak. |
| Alright, that's going to do for today. See you tomorrow, which in Russian is da zaftra! |
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