Thread: Ripped off

Can you say "моя машина была ограблена", when you are trying to say "My car was ripped off"?

I'm trying to find a word for "steal" that is a bit more colloquial, such as "rip off".

"ограбить" and "украсть" are not the same like "rob" and "steal". If you was in the car when it was happening, you can say "ограбили", if not - "обокрали". If you want a slang word for your sentence, you can say for instance "обчистили" (мою машину обчистили). Probably there're other words but I can think of any right now.

Originally Posted by saibot

Can you say "моя машина была ограблена", when you are trying to say "My car was ripped off"?

I'm trying to find a word for "steal" that is a bit more colloquial, such as "rip off".

passives are almost always formal in Russian so моя машина была ограблена is something you'd write in an official report to the police. If you want to be colloquial say something like
мою машину обчистили - this one's perhaps the most colloquial
мою машину обокрали/ограбили
These are called impresonal sentences, if I'm not mistaken, they're analogous to english sentences with they (they ripped off my car) but are much more common in russian where you don't really need a subject if you don't really know who or what it is, they look sort of like passives but are more coloquial so that
he got beat up -> его побили
she got mugged - ее ограбили
she got raped - ее изнасиловали
she got fined for speeding - ее оштрафовали за превышение скорости

get the idea?

I am guessing what Saibot is trying to say is that the car itself was stolen (or not? I've heard it either way). Then

Мою машину увели,
у меня увели машину

or slang

У меня спёрли машину

Originally Posted by adoc

I am guessing what Saibot is trying to say is that the car itself was stolen. Then

Мою машину увели,
у меня увели машину

or slang

У меня спёрли машину

I understood it as something was stolen from the inside his car, but not the car itself. "У меня сперли/свистнули CD, зеркала, руль, переднее правое кресло и расческу из бардачка"

Well, rip off could mean steal, not necessarily rob.

Originally Posted by adoc

Well, rip off could mean just steal, not necessarily rob.

But wouldn't it be "rip off from me" - "ripp off a car from me"? I know for sure, that "rip off a bank" doesn't mean "to steal a bank"

So you insist that every word has only one meaning? A little strange coming from a writer . Let the English resolve this.

Originally Posted by adoc

So you insist that every word has only one meaning?

Well, "to rip off a car" means "to strip a car" - for whatever reason. Not steal, but take it to pieces. The prepositions rule! I could notice a difference between "украли у меня" and "украли меня". I would wake up!

Off is not a preposition here, it's a part of a phrasal verb. Or do you think that "put up with something" uses two prepositions? A preposition would be: somebody ripped a sticker off my car. A preposition requires a subject, doesn't it?

Originally Posted by adoc

Off is not a preposition here, it's a part of a phrasal verb. Or do you think that "put up with something" uses two prepositions?

no-no, i was talking about the absent preposition. There is no prep. here.

Anyways, I'll talk to you later. I'm gonna go.

Thanks! I get it now. I just was looking for a more colloquial word for "to steal". I'm tired of украсть. Sounds too formal and junk.

Originally Posted by saibot

Thanks! I get it now. I just was looking for a more colloquial word for "to steal". I'm tired of украсть. Sounds too formal and junk.

Now we need help!!! What was stolen - a car or something from/inside a car?

Oh, if it's about the car itself, then "Мою машину угнали".

Well, I never heard anyone using the term : "they ripped off the car" or "my car was ripped off". I think, you can only rip off people (swindle).

I thought the term was to 'cut off'

I don't know how we got on to a stolen car, but if you want context clues, you can translate these sentences, just so I can see what verb works best in what situation.

My car was ripped off.

Someone ripped off my wallet.

She's ripping money off from you!

Somone ripped off my CD collection from inside my car.

I'm afraid if I leave it unattended, someone will rip it off.

Originally Posted by saibot

I don't know how we got on to a stolen car, but if you want context clues, you can translate these sentences, just so I can see what verb works best in what situation.

My car was ripped off.

Someone ripped off my wallet.

She's ripping money off from you!

Somone ripped off my CD collection from inside my car.

I'm afraid if I leave it unattended, someone will rip it off.

IMHO: I personally would never say "My car was ripped off". It sounds strange and it is also ambiguous.

I would say "My car was stolen" if the entire car was taken.

Or "Somebody broke into my car" if something inside the car was taken or the colloquial version is "My car was broken-into".

"to rip off" = "to (intentionally) overcharge"
"He ripped me off" = "He (intentionally) overcharged me"

Well where I live (in Minnesota), its quite accepted to use "ripped off" anywhere you can use "stolen". I hear it all the time.

I guess its kinda like the whole "pop" and "soda" thing...different parts of the country have different words for things. Like in Milwaukee, a drinking fountain is called a "bubbler"....

I would use ripped off in more of a informal situation..such as when talking to a friend.

Somone ripped my car off!