?’??á?»?‹???°?‚??: to bust your gut
The other day I was reading an article about Russian words and expressions for working. The author pointed out that almost all the words and expressions for working hard in Russian have to do with physical labor. And while I’m not at all convinced that this is a purely Russian thing, as the author suggested, it did remind me of some useful words that should be in everyone’s vocabulary. Because without them, how can you whine effectively?
Complaining about how hard you are working is an essential skill, especially when conversing with your significant other.
And you really need it when you are trying to get out of doing some chore, which, by the way, is ???‚???°?·?°?‚?????? ???‚ ?€?°?±???‚?‹. Remember that phrase so that you can feign indignation when you are accused of it.
Back to work. It’s not enough to say: ?? ?‚?°?? ?????????? ?€?°?±???‚?°?»! (I worked so much!) That’s sissy work. To intensify it, you might add a time frame. In Russian, these are various versions of a 24-hour shift: ?? ?€?°?±???‚?°?? (I work) ???‚ ?·?°?€?? ???? ?·?°?€?? (literally, from dawn to dawn); ???‚ ?‚?µ?????° ???? ?‚?µ?????° (literally, from darkness to darkness); and ???‚ ???µ?‚???…???? ???? ???µ?‚???…???? (literally, from rooster [crow] to rooster [crow]). You might notice that these expressions already give you better I’ve-worked-too-much bragging rights than their English equivalents. English speakers just work “from dawn to dusk.” Wussies.
???€???????‚?????? (to labor, work hard) is a nice word, although it’s a bit too literary for home use. However, if you add a comparative — ???°?? (like a …) — you may get some mileage out of it. Work up a good head of steam and begin: ?? ?????? ???µ???µ?»?? ?‚?€???????»???? … (All week I worked …) ???°?? ?»?????°???? (like a horse); ???°?? ?????» (like an ox); ???°?? ?????°?? (like a mule); the borderline improper ???°?? ???µ???€ ???° ???»?°???‚?°?†???? (like a slave [negro] on a plantation); or even the borderline weird ???°?? ?????µ?€?¶?????‹?? (like a man possessed).
Or go very Russian and say: ?? ?‚?€???¶?????? ?? ???‚?€?° ???? ???µ?‡?µ?€?° ???°?? ???°???° ???°?€?»??. (I work from morning to night like Papa Carlo.) So who is this guy? He’s the organ-grinder who carves a talking wooden boy ?‘???€?°?‚?????? (Buratino) in the Russian version of Pinocchio. As I recall, in the original story ???°???° ???°?€?»?? was kind of a lay-about and drinker, but who are English speakers to say? I mean, if English people put their noses to the grindstone and use some elbow grease, Russians can say anything they want about an old guy with a talking puppet.
Another strong verb for working is ?????°?»?‹???°?‚??, which originally meant to stick in something, like a needle or a nail. Now it’s mostly slang for working your butt off: ?????¶???? ?·?°?????‡???‚?? ?€?????°???° ?? ?????°?»?‹???°?‚??. (You need to roll up your sleeves and really put your back into it.)
My favorite work-hard word is ???°?…?°?‚??, which once upon a time meant to plow a field. But now it means to work your fingers to the bone doing anything at all. You come home from the office and moan: ???‚?°?‚???? ????????, ???°????, ???°?? ???°?‚???€?¶???‹??! (I’m writing an article! I’ve been working my butt off, literally “working like a convict.”)
The only slight problem with that sentence is when your clever significant other sees through the slang and jokes: ?”?°, ???°, ???°. ?????‚ ???€???»?????°?µ????. (Yeah, right. You’re just dripping with sweat.)
That means: You’re cooking dinner.
Michele A. Berdy, a Moscow-based translator and interpreter, is author of "The Russian Word's Worth" (Glas), a collection of her columns.