A Few Choice Words
From Associated Press
Some examples from “My Unsystematic Dictionary,” by Pavel Palazchenko, former Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev’s interpreter. The literal meaning of the Russian follows his translation of the idiom.
Been there, done that: Na eti rabli my uzhe nastupali; we’ve already stepped on that rake.
Get a life: Ne prospi zhizn’; don’t sleep through life.
In the pipeline: Na podkhode; coming up.
Downsize: Otsekat’ nenuzhnoye; to chop off the unnecessary.
No-brainer: Eto yozhu yasno; it’s clear to a hedgehog.
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