Russian Idioms

A curated set of 82 idioms in Russian — literal translations, real meanings, and where each one comes from.

Explore all Idioms →

• Не вешай лапшу на уши (Ne veshay lapshu na ushi) — Don't lie to me; stop trying to deceive me. Literally: Don't hang noodles on my ears.
• Когда рак на горе свистнет (Kogda rak na gore svistnet) — When pigs fly; never. Literally: When a crayfish whistles on the mountain.
• Медвежья услуга (Medvezhya usluga) — Help that actually makes things worse. Literally: A bear's service.
• Тянуть кота за хвост (Tyanut' kota za khvost) — To procrastinate; to drag something out. Literally: To pull the cat by the tail.
• Делать из мухи слона (Delat' iz mukhi slona) — To blow things way out of proportion. Literally: To make an elephant out of a fly.
• душа нараспашку (dusha naraspashku) — Extremely open, trusting, or emotionally vulnerable with others. Literally: soul wide open.
• работать спустя рукава (rabotat' spustya rukava) — To work carelessly, half-heartedly, without proper effort or attention. Literally: work with sleeves rolled down.
• заморить червячка (zamorit' chervyachka) — To have a light snack or small meal to satisfy hunger temporarily. Literally: starve the worm.
• медведь на ухо наступил (medved' na ukho nastupil) — To lack musical ability or have poor sense of pitch and rhythm. Literally: a bear stepped on one's ear.
• пускать пыль в глаза (puskat' pyl' v glaza) — To deceive or mislead someone, creating false impressions through trickery. Literally: throw dust in eyes.
• Ни пуха ни пера (Ni pukha ni pera) — Good luck — to which the ritual reply is 'To the devil!'. Literally: Neither fluff nor feather.
• Ехать зайцем (Yekhat' zaytsem) — To ride a train or bus without paying. Literally: To ride as a hare.
• После дождичка в четверг (Posle dozhdichka v chetverg) — Never — or certainly no time soon. Literally: After the little rain on Thursday.
• Кот наплакал (Kot naplakal) — A laughably tiny amount. Literally: As much as the cat wept.
• Зарубить на носу (Zarubit' na nosu) — To remember something firmly, once and for all. Literally: To notch it on your nose.
• Водить за нос (Vodit' za nos) — To deceive or string someone along. Literally: To lead by the nose.
• Бить баклуши (Bit' baklushi) — To loaf about doing nothing. Literally: To beat the baklushi.
• Остаться с носом (Ostat'sya s nosom) — To be left empty-handed or outwitted. Literally: To be left with the nose.
• Как сельдь в бочке (Kak sel'd' v bochke) — Packed together very tightly. Literally: Like herrings in a barrel.
• Делать ноги (Delat' nogi) — To run away quickly. Literally: To make legs.
• Заговаривать зубы (Zagovarivat' zuby) — To distract someone with smooth, evasive talk. Literally: To talk someone's teeth away.
• Вешать всех собак (Veshat' vsekh sobak) — To blame someone for everything. Literally: To hang all the dogs on someone.
• Седьмая вода на киселе (Sed'maya voda na kisele) — A very distant relative. Literally: The seventh water on the kissel.
• Положить зубы на полку (Polozhit' zuby na polku) — To go hungry; to tighten your belt. Literally: To put your teeth on the shelf.
• Считать ворон (Schitat' voron) — To idle and let chances slip by. Literally: To count crows.
• Гол как сокол (Gol kak sokol) — Dirt poor; without a thing to your name. Literally: Bare as a falcon.
• сыпать соль на рану (sypat' sol' na ranu) — To deliberately make someone's suffering worse by adding mockery or fresh insult to their misfortune. Literally: to pour salt on a wound.
• через огонь, воду и медные трубы (cherez ogon', vodu i mednye truby) — To endure any hardship or ordeal without hesitation; to go through anything for someone or something. Literally: through fire, water, and copper pipes.
• книга за семью печатями (kniga za sem'yu pechatyami) — Something utterly mysterious and incomprehensible; a complete enigma. Literally: a book under seven seals.
• в Тулу со своим самоваром (v Tulu so svoim samovarom) — To do something pointless or wasteful; to bring something unnecessary or redundant to a place that already has it in abundance. Literally: to Tula with one's own samovar.
• за тридевять земель (za tridevyat' zemel') — An extremely distant, remote place; somewhere impossibly far away. Literally: beyond three-times-nine lands.
• проверять на вшивость (proveryat' na shivost') — To scrutinize or investigate someone closely to uncover hidden faults or problems; to vet thoroughly. Literally: to check for lice.
• в долгах как в шелках (v dolgakh kak v shelkakh) — To be deeply and hopelessly in debt. Literally: in debts as in silk.
• положа руку на сердце (polozhá ruku na sérdtse) — Speaking with complete sincerity and honesty. Literally: putting a hand on one's heart.
• до свадьбы заживёт (do svad'by zazhivyot) — A minor injury or problem will resolve itself naturally and quickly. Literally: by the wedding it will heal.
• давать на чай (davat' na chay) — To give a tip or small payment to a service worker. Literally: to give for tea.
• наступить дважды на одни и те же грабли (nastupitʹ dvazhdy na odni i te zhe grabli) — To repeat the same mistake or fall into the same trap a second time. Literally: to step twice on the same rake.
• ежовые рукавицы (ezhovye rukavitsy) — Harsh, strict, or iron-fisted rule or discipline. Literally: hedgehog gloves.
• козырная карта (kozyrnaya karta) — A decisive advantage or secret resource held in reserve. Literally: trump card.
• оставаться в дураках (ostavat'sya v durakakh) — To be tricked or made a fool of; to lose or come out the worse in a situation. Literally: to remain in the fools.
• в ус не дуть (v us ne dut') — To show complete indifference or not to care at all. Literally: not to blow into the mustache.
• под башмаком (pod bashmakóm) — Dominated or controlled by one's wife; henpecked. Literally: under the shoe.
• отложить в долгий ящик (otlozhit' v dolgiy yashchik) — To postpone or shelve something indefinitely, leaving it forgotten. Literally: to set aside in a long drawer.
• на все четыре стороны (na vse chetyre storony) — In any direction one wishes; to go wherever one pleases. Literally: to all four sides.
• ездить в Тулу со своим самоваром (ezdit' v Tulu so svoim samovarom) — To do something entirely pointless or unnecessary, bringing what is already abundant in that place. Literally: to drive to Tula with one's own samovar.
• лежачий полицейский (lezhachiy politseyskiy) — A speed bump or traffic calming device. Literally: lying policeman.
• надуться как мышь на крупу (nadut'sya kak mysh' na krupu) — To become angry or offended; to sulk or huff indignantly. Literally: to puff up like a mouse on groats.
• пудрить мозги (pudrit' mozgi) — To mislead someone with false or nonsensical talk; to deceive or confuse deliberately. Literally: to powder the brains.
• один с сошкой, а семеро с ложкой (odin s soshkoy, a semero s lozhkoy) — many people live off the labor of one worker. Literally: one with a plow, and seven with a spoon.
• сила есть — ума не надо (sila yest — uma ne nado) — a person who is physically strong but intellectually weak or stupid. Literally: strength exists — mind is not needed.
• зарывать свой талант в землю (zaryvat' svoy talant v zemlyu) — to waste or hide one's natural gifts instead of using them. Literally: to bury one's talent in the earth.
• своя рубашка ближе к телу (svoya rubashka blizhe k telu) — self-interest comes before charity; one should prioritize one's own welfare and family. Literally: one's own shirt is closer to the body.
• в лес дрова возить (v les drova vozit') — to do something pointless or redundant; to offer something to someone who already has plenty of it. Literally: to bring firewood to the forest.
• сражаться с ветряными мельницами (srazhat'sya s vetryanymi mel'nitsami) — To struggle against imaginary or futile enemies; to waste effort on impossible causes. Literally: to fight with windmills.
• ходить вокруг да около (khodit' vokrug da okolo) — To avoid speaking plainly; to approach a subject indirectly or evasively. Literally: to walk around yes and near.
• гнать в три шеи (gnat' v tri shei) — To expel or drive someone away forcefully and without ceremony. Literally: to chase in three necks.
• полтора землекопа (poltora zemlyekopa) — An absurdly small group; a nonsensical quantity that defies rational measure. Literally: one and a half diggers.
• язык проглотил (yazyk proglotil) — To be unable or unwilling to speak; to remain silent when words are called for. Literally: swallowed the tongue.
• метать бисер перед свиньями (metat' biser pered svin'yami) — To offer something precious or refined to someone incapable of appreciating it. Literally: to cast pearls before swine.
• сушить сухари (sushit' sukhari) — To prepare oneself mentally and materially for imprisonment or arrest. Literally: to dry rusks.
• отбросить копыта (otbrosit' kopyta) — To die, to kick the bucket. Literally: to throw off hooves.
• чепуха на постном масле (chepukha na postnom masle) — Complete and utter nonsense or rubbish. Literally: nonsense on lenten oil.
• пан или пропал (pan ili propal) — To risk everything on a single venture; all or nothing, sink or swim. Literally: lord or lost.
• до посинения (do posineniya) — To do something with extreme effort or persistence, usually futilely. Literally: until blueness.
• горе луковое (gore lukovoye) — A person who is accident-prone, hapless, or bumbling; one who causes trouble by their own incompetence. Literally: onion grief.
• огород городить (ogorod gorodit') — To make a fuss or create complicated problems over something trivial; to engage in useless busy-work or to talk nonsense. Literally: to build a vegetable garden.
• на честном слове и на одном крыле (na chestnom slove i na odnom kryle) — Succeeding or surviving by the barest margin, through luck or desperation rather than solid means. Literally: on honest word and on one wing.
• развесистая клюква (razvestistaya klyukva) — Ignorant stereotypes and tall tales about Russia, especially those peddled by foreigners. Literally: spreading cranberry.
• сыграть в ящик (sygrat' v yashchik) — To die. Literally: to play in a box.
• нашего полку прибыло (nashego polku pribylo) — Another person has joined a group or shared predicament; a welcome to the club. Literally: our regiment has increased.
• на славу (na slavu) — Excellently; very well; in a first-rate manner. Literally: to glory.
• ври больше (vri bolshe) — An expression of dismissive disbelief; an ironical way of saying someone's story is unconvincing. Literally: lie more.
• вводить в заблуждение (vvodit' v zabluzhdenie) — To deceive or mislead someone deliberately. Literally: to put into delusion.
• пускаться во все тяжкие (puskat'sya vo vse tyazhkiye) — To abandon restraint and indulge recklessly in vices or wrongdoing without scruple. Literally: to set oneself into all the grave things.
• хоть ложись и умирай (hot' lozhis' i umiray) — There is no escape or solution; one must accept an impossible or desperate situation. Literally: even lie down and die.
• на коленке (na kolenke) — Done hastily and without proper tools or technique; improvised or makeshift. Literally: on the knee.
• сарафанное радио (sarafannoe radio) — The informal spread of gossip or news from person to person, especially by word of mouth. Literally: sarafan radio.
• козёл отпущения (kozjol otpushchenija) — A person blamed or punished for the wrongs of others; a scapegoat. Literally: goat of dismissal.
• нечего греха таить (nechego grekha tait') — Truth be told; one might as well admit something true and damning rather than conceal it. Literally: nothing of sin to hide.
• хоть убей (khot' ubey) — For the life of me; under no circumstances or condition could one do something. Literally: even kill.
• хоть умри (khot' umri) — No matter what the cost or consequence; absolutely and without exception. Literally: even die.
• молоко на губах не обсохло (moloko na gubakh ne obsokhlo) — a very young or inexperienced person; someone barely past infancy. Literally: milk has not dried on the lips.

Loading the full interactive collection…