In entries with two or more senses, each sense has its own definition, placed after the Arabic numeral introducing the sense.
Definitions and usage notes use generic “he” to refer to both sexes. In usage notes, “of” generally introduces the subject of the Russian phrase or the person or thing modified by the phrase; “in refer. to” indicates the object of the Russian phrase or the general situation surrounding the use of the idiom. For example:
M-153 • СИДЕТЬ МЕШКОМ на ком. (of a garment
that is too large, wide etc) to fit poorly .
Л-58 • КТО В ЛЕС, КТО ПО ДРОВА. (often in refer.
to singing and playing musical instruments) (people do sth.)
without coordination among themselves, without agreement,
cooperation.
Collocates in Definitions
The translations of collocates are generally given in parentheses as part of the definition. However, in those rare cases in which different collocates would require different wordings of the definition, the collocates are not included in the definition; for example: П-493 отдать на ПОТОК И РАЗГРАБЛЕНИЕ что; предать ПОТОКУ И РАЗГРАБЛЕНИЮ что. ‘complete destruction and widespread looting (of some place, country etc)’. Usage of the collocates is then shown in patterns:
Х-ы отдали Y на поток и разграбление — Xs surrendered Y to be ravaged and plundered (pillaged and ru-
ined); || Х-ы предали Y потоку и разграблению — Xs
ravaged and plundered (pillaged and ruined) Y.
Prepositions, Conjunctions, Particles
No definition per se has been provided for most complex prepositions, complex conjunctions, and particles; instead, there is a usage note describing the relationship between the ele-ment(s) associated with the idiom and other elements of the context. In those cases where a definition per se has been provided, it follows the usage note. Some typical descriptions are:
* used to indicate the unexpected nature of the action that follows
* used to introduce a clause, phrase etc whose information adds to, and is more important than, the information in the preceding statement
* used to show that the situation or action presented in the main clause immediately follows the situation or action presented in the subordinate clause
* used to show that the truthfulness or realization of what is stated in the main clause is contingent upon the fulfillment of the condition stated in the subordinate clause
Interjections
Interjections are described in terms of the emotions they can convey; for example: НУ И НУ! ‘used to express surprise, delight, displeasure, an ironic attitude etc.’
English Equivalents
The overwhelming majority of entries contain more than one English equivalent, since different contexts often require different translations of a given idiom. When a Russian idiom has several English equivalents, those that are most broadly applicable (or most similar to the Russian) are presented first, and those that are most restricted are presented last. Equivalents in a given entry may differ stylistically in order to cover nineteenth- as well as twentieth- and twenty-first-century contexts.
Whenever possible, equivalents are presented in the same form as the Russian idiom, that is, an English noun phrase for a Russian noun phrase, an English verb phrase for a Russian verb phrase, and so forth. Equivalents for Russian idioms that function as complete sentences are presented in sentential form.
The notation “Cf.” (which when given follows the last English equivalent in an entry) is used to introduce English idioms and sayings that, although not suggested for purposes of translation, provide insight into the meaning of the Russian idiom. Often such phrases (as “every Tom, Dick, and Harry” for КАЖДЫЙ (ВСЯКИЙ) ВСТРЕЧНЫЙ ‘anyone and everyone’) have a distinct national flavor, include typical American or British names, and the like. However, not all culturally bound elements are reserved for “Cf.” Since substantial Russian communities can be found in English-speaking countries, the terms “ruble” and “kopeck,” for example, are included with “penny,” “dime,” etc., in numerous English equivalents.
Collocates in Equivalents
In cases when it is impossible to present the English equivalent of a Russian idiom without collocates, the collocates are provided along with the equivalent (in parentheses, when possible). For example, many adverbial intensifiers cannot be translated without a verb. In such cases, the English equivalents are
[ xxiv ]
presented with their collocates, occasionally in a pattern, as in (И) В ГЛАЗА не видал, не видел.: X (и) в глаза не видел Y-a — X has never set (laid) eyes on (upon) Y.
Infinitives
Infinitives in the equivalents are presented without the infinitive marker “to,” except in instances when “to” is a fixed component of the English equivalent, as in ПО ПРАВДЕ ГОВОРЯ (СКАЗАТЬ). ‘to tell (you) the truth’ used as a sentence adverbial.
Articles
Noun phrases are generally presented without an article, but there are some exceptions. For example, the definite article “the” is provided when an idiom is not used without it (ЦАРСТВО НЕБЕСНОЕ, sense 1, ‘the kingdom of heaven; the heavenly kingdom; the kingdom of God’); the indefinite article “a/an” may be added to indicate that the equivalent cannot be used without an article or specifier of some type (ФОМА НЕВЕРНЫЙ ‘a doubting Thomas’).
Illustrative Patterns
Some English equivalents are preceded by a Russian pattern that illustrates the use of the idiom in a sentence. Patterns are used for all verb phrases and for many idioms functioning as subject-complements.
Some Russian idioms that function as predicates do not contain a verb, and the temporal frame of the action must be interpolated from the context. In order to translate the Russian pattern, some temporal context must be assumed. The assumed temporal context is indicated in brackets preceding the English equivalents: for example, the pattern for H-171 НИ НОГОЙ (sense 1) reads:
X к Y-y (в место Z) ни ногой — [in present contexts] X doesn’t set (never sets) foot in Y’s house (in place Z
etc).
Occasionally, patterns are provided for context-specific uses of an idiom. For example, Д-247 ПО ДОЛГУ чего ‘in order to meet the demands dictated by or intrinsic to sth.’ has separate patterns for по долгу службы ‘as part of one’s (s.o.‘s) duties (responsibilities etc).’ and по долгу чести ‘true to one’s honor’. In addition to the equivalents offered in these patterns, some or all of the general equivalents presented for this idiom may also fit по долгу службы and по долгу чести.
Restrictions
A restriction is presented in square brackets and applies to all equivalents that follow it, up to the next restriction or pattern, if there is one. English equivalents that can be used only in select contexts and should therefore be used cautiously are preceded by the restriction “[lim.]” to indicate that they are to be used only in limited contexts. Other restrictions may point out syntactic or situational limitations, the collocates with which an equivalent may be used, or the particular element of a semantically rich Russian idiom that is stressed by the equivalents that follow; for example:
Б-213 • НАШ БРАТ. [when used as obj or subj] people (men, guys, fellows etc) like us (me); .[usu. when foll. by an appos] we (us) writers (workers etc); our (my) fellow writers (workers etc).
The entry 3-203 ЗАГОВАРИВАТЬ/ЗАГОВОРИТЬ ЗУБЫ has the following restrictions: [esp. with the goal of avoiding an unpleasant topic]; [esp. with the goal of deceiving the interlocutor]; [esp. with the goal of obtaining sth. from s.o. or extricating o.s. from an uncomfortable situation].