Thread: Чьей вопрос?

So the question is on some elementry grammar

What is the best translation of:
Who's book is this?
1) Чья книга?
2) Чья это книга?
3) Чья эта книга?
4) Чего ты на меня паришь, мужик!

Not sure about the last one though...

So what would the others translate to?

Thanks!

Vinnie & Saibot

Well, IMHO, I think it's:

чья это книга.

<---Cheburashka told me so. Can't argue with a native speaker. Plus, he said if I didn't believe him...he'd claw my eyes out! *nervously glances behind shoulder*

Originally Posted by kalinka_vinnie

What is the best translation of:
Who's book is this?
1) Чья книга?
2) Чья это книга?
3) Чья эта книга?

Depends on context. The 2nd and 3rd sound similar in spoken language. I'm not quite sure but maybe the 2nd is not correct becouse это(ср. р.) you should make agree with книга(ж.р.), compare this это - книга(this is a book - what is this?) and this эта книга (this book... - what the book..?) though as I said in spoken language they sound similar, but Это чья книга? is correct. One more translation - Книга чья? - when I take a book the first word appears in my brain is "книга" then everything else.

4) Чего ты на меня паришь, мужик!
Not sure about the last one though...

1. Чего ты меня паришь, мужик! - somethin like "what are you pissing me off, man?", there is an exprassion парить мозги.
2. Чего ты на меня пялишься, мужик! What are you looking at me man?
пялиться - to glaze
Though if you are 100% sure about your sentence see the 1st. meaning.

I've went through two different dictionaries and found examples:

Harper Collins:

чей это ребёнок? - Whose child is this?

Lingvo:

чей это нож? — whose knife is it?

чей это дом? — whose house is this?

чья это книга? — whose book is it?

I just went with the pattern.

Originally Posted by JJ

Originally Posted by kalinka_vinnie

4) Чего ты на меня паришь, мужик!
Not sure about the last one though...

1. Чего ты меня паришь, мужик! - somethin like "what are you pissing me off, man?", there is an exprassion парить мозги.
2. Чего ты на меня пялишься, мужик! What are you looking at me man?
пялиться - to glaze
Though if you are 100% sure about your sentence see the 1st. meaning.

1. This is the one I wanted... it comes from Brat 2 (the мужик I added myself...), but the translation would rather be "Why are you pissing me off, man", not so?
2. Interesting variant, will be diligently used in social gatherings!

Thanks JJ, or should I say Штирлиц?

Originally Posted by saibot

I've went through two different dictionaries and found examples:
чья это книга? — whose book is it?

Ok, I agree with this, the 2nd is correct. But I said also about 3rd - Чья эта книга? - whose this book is it? It seems to me it is also correct sentence. Natives, what do you think?

Originally Posted by kalinka_vinnie

1. ...but the translation would rather be "Why are you pissing me off, man", not so?

Thanks for correction. This is the same everlasting trouble for native russian like "почему или зачем?" for native english.. Чего is genetive of что, so I assosiate it more with "what" than with "why".

Thanks JJ, or should I say Штирлиц?

Тогда уж штандартен-фюрер СС Макс фон Штирлиц

Originally Posted by JJ

Thanks for correction. This is the same everlasting trouble for native russian like "почему или зачем?" for native english.. Чего is genetive of что, so I assosiate it more with "what" than with "why".

Well, чего, here means "what for" (lit. for what), which is synonymous with why. Couldn't you just say "Зачем ты меня паришь?", or is there a shade of meaning I don't get, штандартен-фюрер СС Макс фон Штирлиц?

Definitely "Зачем ты меня паришь" or "Почему ты меня паришь" are possible but they sound out of situation when you use the word "паришь" It's kinda "Why art thou pissin' me off" or maybe better "Excuse me, for what purpose are you pissing me off", the accent is moved from "pissing me off" - the action - to the form of the sentence and the aggressiveness of the expression is decreasing alot so the effect of insulting of these words is very low....
А я бы сказал так - "Чё ты мне мозги паришь?"



З.Ы. Зови меня просто - JJ.

"Штандартенфюрер", "группенфюрер" и т.д. слитно пишутся.

пялишься - I would translate as "to stare".

Originally Posted by JJ

А я бы сказал так - "Чё ты мне мозги паришь?"

У нас бы сказали "Не пудри мне мозги." (пудра - face powder)

Originally Posted by Lampada

Originally Posted by JJ

А я бы сказал так - "Чё ты мне мозги паришь?"

У нас бы сказали "Не пудри мне мозги." (пудра - face powder)

У нас могли сказать и так и так. И еще:
"Ты мне мозги не... размножай".

Originally Posted by kalinka_vinnie

So the question is on some elementry grammar

What is the best translation of:
Who's book is this?
1) Чья книга?
2) Чья это книга?
3) Чья эта книга?
4) Чего ты на меня паришь, мужик!

Not sure about the last one though...

So what would the others translate to?

Thanks!

Vinnie & Saibot

The first three are all correct, with some slight differences. Well, the second and the third sentences seem equal, JJ already said that, and the first one sounds like an order to answer, something a drill sergeant would ask.