?’?‹́?????» ?????±?°́??: dog walking
If there is one thing I love about the Russian language, it's word formation — that magical process whereby you take a root word, add a prefix, and suddenly you aren't talking about doing the laundry (???‚???€?°?‚??), you're talking about getting a stain out (???‚???‚???€?‹???°?‚??).
One basic verb that is particularly rich in spin-offs is ?????»???‚?? (to stroll). Actually, the basic verb itself is pretty rich in meaning. First of all, it just means to walk around for pleasure: ???°?¶???‹?? ???µ???? ???????»?µ ???±?µ???° ???‹ ?? ?????¶?µ?? ?????»???µ?? ?? ???°?€???µ. (Every day after lunch my husband and I take a walk in the park.) Or it can mean to dash around. Eyes can do this: ?•???? ???·???»???? ?????»???» ???? ?????????°?‚?µ. (His glance darted around the room.) And so can steering wheels: ? ???»?? ???€?? ?µ?·???µ ?????»???µ?‚ ?‚?????°-???????°. (When I'm driving, the steering wheel jerks back and forth.)
And it can also mean to party: ???????µ???? ?????»???»?? ???? ???‚?€?°. (Our neighbors partied until dawn.) Or to enjoy a private party, often with the word ???°?»?µ???? (on the left): ?????‡?µ???? ?????¶???? ???°?‡?????°???‚ ?????»???‚?? ???°?»?µ????? (Why do husbands start cheating?)
The prefix ???‚- can indicate doing something completely, so ???‚?????»???‚?? can mean having your share of pleasure. ???? ???µ???µ?»?? ???‚?????»???» ???????‘ ???€?µ????. (He had a lot of fun in his life.) But the prefix ???‚- also has the sense of "out." You'll hear ???‚?????»???‚?? in the workplace — or rather, out of the workplace. ???‚?????»???‚?? ???‚???????? is to take a vacation. And ???‚?????» is a comp day. ???????????»?????? ?????µ ???€?????»?????? ?€?°?±???‚?°?‚?? ?? ?????±?±???‚??, ?? ?±?€?°?»?° ???‚?????». (Since I had to work on Saturday, I took a comp day.)
?’?‹- is a prefix that can mean doing something to completion or using something up. ?’?‹?????»???‚?? sometimes means "to do your quota of walking." ?? ???‚?€???? ???‹?????»???» ?‡?°??. (This morning I did my hour walk.) But most of the time it's used to mean taking your dog/pig/goat/cat/ferret for a walk. ???‚?€???? ?? ???µ?‡?µ?€???? ?? ?»???±???? ???????????? ?? ???‹?????»?????°?? ?????±?°????. (I walk my dog morning and night in any weather.) This produces the noun ???‹?????» (a walk), which you may see on signs: ?’?‹?????» ?????±?°?? ???‚?€?????? ?·?°???€?µ?‰?‘??. (No dogs allowed.) This is actually a euphemism for "Don't you dare let your dog do his business here."
Things get wilder with the prefix ?€?°?·-. ? ?°?·?????»???‚?? isn't used that often, but you might find it in the context of dispersing something, like ?€?°?·?????»???‚?? ?‚???????? (chase away the blues). Most of the time you hear it as a noun — ?€?°?·?????» (riot, debauchery). Sometimes vices go wild, like ?€?°?·?????» ?????€?€?????†???? (rampant corruption). More often people go wild: ?‘?‹???????? ?????¶ ???????‚???»???? ?? ?€?°?·?????» ???????»?µ ?€?°?·???????°. (My ex really helled around after the divorce.) You can also use the verb ?€?°?·?????»???‚?????? to describe whooping it up: ? ?°?·?????»???»?????? ???° ?????°?????±?µ! (We really kicked back at the wedding!)
Alas, ?€?°?·?????»???‚?????? can lead to ?????????»???‚??????, which means to get yourself into trouble or difficulties because of too much carousing or cutting loose. This is an all-purpose verb. You look at the chaos your kids left after playing: ?”???????»???»??????! (What a mess!) You look at your significant other with a killer hangover: ?”???????»???»????! (That's what you get!) Or you look carefully at your teenage daughter and realize she's pregnant: ?”???????»???»?°????! (Look what you got yourself into!)
To which they all might answer: ?“???»???‚?? ?‚?°?? ?????»???‚??! (If you're going to have fun, really have fun!)
Michele A. Berdy, a Moscow-based translator and interpreter, is author of "The Russian Word's Worth" (Glas), a collection of her columns.