??́?‡?µ????: very, really, incredibly
???‡?µ???? (very) is one of those handy little words you learn in Russian 101 and then use every day. Add it to any verb to jack up the intensity and emotion. For example: ?? ?‚?µ?±?? ?»???±?»?? (I love you) is a summer fling; ?? ?‚?µ?±?? ???‡?µ???? ?»???±?»?? (I love you very much) is maybe we should think about a mortgage.
Say it on its own to telegraph strong feeling. ?????€?‚ ???????€?°?????»????? ???‡?µ????. ("Did you like the cake?" "Very much.") Or combine it with need to turn a statement into a plea: ???°?? ???‡?µ???? ?????¶???? ???… ???€?????»?°?????‚??! (We really, really have to invite them!)
But ubiquitous as it is, ???‡?µ???? is not the only way to express very-ness. You want very? Russian's got lots of very — a varied assortment providing a special very for every situation.
One batch of very starts with "without" (?±?µ?·) and is good for describing something that is so very, very big it seems boundless. ???? ?±?µ?·???€?°?????‡???? ?‰?µ???€?‹??. (His generosity knows no bounds.) ?? ?±?µ?·???µ?€???? ?????€?¶??????. (I'm bursting with pride.) ?????° ?±?µ?????????µ?‡???? ?±?»?°???????°?€???° (She'll be eternally grateful).
Another batch is for something that's so very, very whatever you just can't believe your eyes. ???? ???µ???µ?€?????‚???? ???€?°??????. (He is unbelievably handsome.) ???µ???????»?????? ?‡?°?????? ?????? ???±???€?°?»??????, ?????‚?°?»?? ???µ?????????µ?€????. (They spent hours cleaning and were just exhausted.) ?? ?±?µ?·???????? ?»???±?»?? ???»???±????????. (I adore strawberries, literally "I love them madly.") ?’???»?¶?????°?? ???°???±?° — ???µ???±?‹?????????µ?????? ???°?¶???‹?? ???±???µ???‚. (The Volga dam was an extraordinarily important project.)
And then there are the awfully, terribly verys, which can be used to describe things that are intensely bad or insanely good. ?? ?¶???‚???? ?»???±?»?? ?¶???·????. (I love life so terribly much). ???¶?°?????? ?…???‡?µ?‚???? ???»?°??????????. (I have an awful craving for something sweet.) ?–???‚?? ???°?? ?…???‡?µ?‚???? ???»?°??????????. (I'm dying for a sweet, literally "It's awful how much I want a sweet.") ???‹ ???????µ?»??, ???°?? ?????????°?€???? ?????????‹?? ?‘???€???? ???‘?» ??????????. (We watched how Boris, horridly drunk, walked home.) ???? ???????»?°?» ?µ???? ???µ ?????±???? ???€???±??. (He told him where to get off, but he wasn't terribly rude about it.)
It's fun to see the horribly, terribly verys going both ways: ??-?‚?? ???»?µ???µ?€ ???€?µ???????‡???‚?°??. ???¶ ?±???»?????? ???? ???????????‹??. (Me — I prefer clover. It's delicious, literally "it's painfully tasty.") ? ?µ?‡???° ???? ?±???»?????µ ???µ ???????°???°?»?°????, ?° ???????° ???·-???????? ???…?° ???°?·?°?»?°???? ?±???»?????? ???€???‚??????????. (They didn't come across any other rivers, and the water from under the moss tasted just horribly bad.)
And it's very satisfying to use the amazingly, fantastically verys, where something is so very, very out of the world. ???? ?„?°???‚?°???‚???‡?µ?????? ?±?????°?‚. (He is fantastically wealthy.) ?? ???µ?‘ ?„?µ???????µ???°?»?????? ?·?µ?»?‘???‹?µ, ?‚?????€?????‹?µ ???»?°?·?°. (She has phenomenally green tiger's eyes.) ???µ?„ ???????°?€ ???·???????‚?µ?»?????? ???????????? ?????‚???????‚. (The chef cooks amazingly well.)
Russian, being Russian, has a few little tricks up its linguistic sleeve with ???‡?µ????. In Russian collective experience, you can have too much of a good thing. For example, ???? ???‡?µ???? ???????‹?? could simply mean that a guy is really smart. Or it might sound like it's going to be followed by "???? …" ("but …") And if you switch word order, ???? ???????‹?? ???‡?µ???? almost always means: He's too smart for his own good. And if, God forbid, someone is ???»?????????? ???????‹?? (way too smart), that means his intelligence has gotten him in trouble.
Russians have a phrase for that, too: ?“???€?µ ???‚ ?????° (Woe from Wit).
Michele A. Berdy, a Moscow-based translator and interpreter, is author of "The Russian Word's Worth" (Glas), a collection of her columns.