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The enemy will not understand: which Ukrainian words have no exact equivalents in Russian

Alina MilsentNews
Rules of the Ukrainian language. Source: Created with the help of AI

There are certain words and phrases in the Ukrainian language that true Ukrainians can understand and that the enemy will not understand without proper training. Our language is rich and melodious, so it's worth regularly adding interesting lexical items to your vocabulary.

Linguists have compiled a list of words that can lead the enemy into a dead end. Read the OBOZ.UA article to find out which lexemes have no equivalents in Russian at all.

A unique feature of the Ukrainian language is the formation of names of places and objects. For example, there is no one-word Russian equivalent of the Ukrainian word "knyharnya" (bookstore), you can only say "knizny magazin". Similar word forms with the endings -arnia or -yarnya are used to form the names of certain shops and establishments:

  • vynarnya - wine shop;
  • brovarnya - a beer factory;
  • syrovarnya - a cheese factory.

In Ukrainian, there is a nice-sounding word called vyriy, which is the name of a place where birds fly away. The enemy will not understand, and is unlikely to be able to pronounce this word without an accent. There is no analog for vyriy in Russian. They say that birds fly to warm lands.

Words like railroad and chessboard are also authentic. It is also not easy to find a Ukrainian equivalent to the word "nivroku" (not bad). Alternatively, you can say "nichego sebe" or "neploho".

The Russians will never win because they don't even have a one word for it (win - pobeda, a single verb is non-existent there - pobedyu? pobezhu?). The Ukrainian word for " I win" - "peremozhu" is two Russian words "oderzhu pobedu".

Often, for one Russian word, you can find many of our equivalents:

  • "boltat'" (to chat) - balakaty, homonity, hutoryty, patyakaty; motlyaty, telipaty;
  • "vklyuchat" (to include/turn on) - zavodyty, vklyuchaty; zarakhovuvaty; vmykaty;
  • "maslo" (butter; oil; lubricant) - maslo (vershkove); oliya; mastylo:
  • "otkryvat''" (to open) - vidchynyaty (a door, a window); vidkryvaty (gather); vynakhodyty (new means of treatment); rozplyushchuvaty (eyes); rozhortaty (book); vidkorkovuvaty (a bottle);
  • "razoytis', razhoditsya" (disperse) - roziytysʹ, rozkhodytysʹ; roztsuratysʹ, rozsvarytysʹ; riznytysʹ; ne pohodzhuvatysya; rozpalytysya; rozsokhnutysʹ; rozmynutysʹ

The enemy is unlikely to understand the meaning of the words confuse, hint, benefactor, artist, and hoop.

Today, researchers say that the Soviet government committed a real linguistic crime by "repressing" Ukrainian words that had been used in everyday life and literature for centuries.

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