Thread: Bought Russian slang dictionary - Some of the funny translations (my best purchase!)

I bought a Russian-Hebrew slang glossary (don't worry, I translated all the Hebrew to English here!). Problem is that it's intended for Russians learning Hebrew, but I'm exploiting it to learn Russian This glossary is simply hilarious!

Turns out I don't know all of the Hebrew slang in there, but I know enough to pick up the Russian equivalents. I did my best to pick out my favorites and post the here



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What a bummer, what a drag - какая невезуха

Don't screw up! - Не подведи

Thug, bully - "Кот"...Наглый тип (this was the funniest translation, because in Hebrew "ars" is like an "Israeli gopnik"... it's impossible to even translate it to English!)

Bite me! - Плевать мне на тебя

Got told off- получил головомойку (We use it a lot in Hebrew)

have a screw loose - У тебя что, винтика не хватает (MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE )

Skedaddle - сматывается (I'm so gonna use it)

daydreaming - Витает в облаках (happened to me a lot when I was a kid)

Lost case / f***ed up beyond all repair - Дело швах

Make fun of - Насмехаться над... / подшучивать

Absolute nonsense - Пустой трёп

Horndog / horny - Сластолюбец (LOL!).. the other translation they wrote in Russian is "падок до женского пола" ....hehe

Laid-back slacker - неряха

That's all there is - Так обстоят дело / Так уж повелось

OK, I won't overdo it... maybe I'll add more later

Interesting... It may be useful thx anyway)

And more from my country-- this is how they translated from Hebrew to English "Keep the coast clean"

Half of those are perfectly literary. Also many slightly colloquial phrases rather than "slang".

Позабавило:
Сластолюбец
Дело швах

Originally Posted by Valda

Bite me! - Плевать мне на тебя

Hmmm... seems like a not-too-bad translation of "bite me", although I'm not sure if the Russian syntax is quite correct in this context.

Although I think that Плевать мне на тебя might be a little closer to "As far as I'm concerned, you can bite me" -- in other words, expressing indifference more than active hostility. Literally, I would interpret Плевать мне на тебя as something like "I'm inclined to spit on you" (or, as Monty Python said, "I fart in your general direction"), as opposed to the very direct Плюю тебе в лицо!, "I spit in your face!"

By the way, for Russians, I would explain "Bite me!" as being a milder (but still rude) euphemism for "Suck my c*ck!" -- not in the literal sexual sense but with the meaning "Go to f*cking hell." So perhaps "Пошёл на баню!" would be a good way to express the euphemistic quality of "Bite me!"

Got told off- получил головомойку

As far as I know, this one is correct.

have a screw loose - У тебя что, винтика не хватает (MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE )

Googling suggests that винтиков (gen. pl.) seems to be more common than винтика (gen. sg.), but otherwise it seems correct. Is the same metaphor used in Hebrew?

Lost case / f***ed up beyond all repair - Дело швах

Hmmm, I wondered if this had anything to do with the phonetic term schwa (ə). No, it turns out -- швах is from the German word schwach ("weak", слабый) while schwa in phonetics comes from the name for one of the Hebrew vowel-points.

Дело в том, что очень многие фразы довольно редко употребляются сейчас (и винтики, и швах, и головомойка...).

Googling suggests that винтиков (gen. pl.) seems to be more common than винтика (gen. sg.), but otherwise it seems correct. Is the same metaphor used in Hebrew?

In Hebrew it's "You droppd a screw", to be exact

Hmmm... seems like a not-too-bad translation of "bite me", although I'm not sure if the Russian syntax is quite correct in this context.

Although I think that Плевать мне на тебя might be a little closer to "As far as I'm concerned, you can bite me" -- in other words, expressing indifference more than active hostility. Literally, I would interpret Плевать мне на тебя as something like "I'm inclined to spit on you" (or, as Monty Python said, "I fart in your general direction"), as opposed to the very direct Плюю тебе в лицо!, "I spit in your face!"

By the way, for Russians, I would explain "Bite me!" as being a milder (but still rude) euphemism for "Suck my c*ck!" -- not in the literal sexual sense but with the meaning "Go to f*cking hell." So perhaps "Пошёл на баню!" would be a good way to express the euphemistic quality of "Bite me!"

I always thought "bite me" is more like иди в жопу, which I use a lot

Hmmm, I wondered if this had anything to do with the phonetic term schwa (ə). No, it turns out -- швах is from the German word schwach ("weak", слабый) while schwa in phonetics comes from the name for one of the Hebrew vowel-points.

Wow, I almost but forgot the Hebrew vowel-points names since I used them in the first grade. I remember just 2 of them. I even forgot what schwa means!

Дело в том, что очень многие фразы довольно редко употребляются сейчас (и винтики, и швах, и головомойка...).

Half of those are perfectly literary. Also many slightly colloquial phrases rather than "slang".

The "slang" is not for the Russian terms, the Russian terms are just explanatory so they're not "always" slang. If I could find a practical slang dictionary for students of Russian (yea I know all the weird websites), I would've bought it.

Cover one's ass - Беречь свою задницу

Play hookey - смыться / смотаться

to pimp / pimp up - отполировать, лакировать (о старой и заброшенной вещи)

Bum out - смутить, расстроить

Besides oneself - не в себе (I like this translation)

Good time! - Полный комфорт

Nerdboy, square - недотёпа

The whole gang - всё семейство

Don't talk my ears off - Не пудри мне мозги

And my absolute favorite, I'm leaving untranslated from Hebrew

Арабское название мужского полового органа / член - "zubi"

Yep....

That's why when I first heard the word "Zubi" in Russian I thought it means the same... I was starting to think we have too many "penis-doctors" in my country

I just found the ultimate proof to what I've been always telling you guys! I have the definition of what "Russian" (we say it 'Rusi') means in Hebrew

"Русский" или "еврей из России"

Originally Posted by Valda

I
Besides oneself - не в себе (I like this translation)

there is another word - невменяемый

And there is a joke about that word
Знаешь, что такое невменяемая девушка?
Это та, которая в конце кричит:”Только не в меня!”.

Супер! Слэнг это очень важная часть языковой культуры, намного чаще употребляемая нежели литературный язык, поэтому спасибо Valda за столь ценную инфу)

Давай еще! )