The vocabulary of the Russian language is rich and varied. Along with commonly used vocabulary, there are many words of limited use, and among them are dialect words, which will be discussed in the article.
Common and restricted words
The composition of the vocabulary of the Russian language is heterogeneous. There are a huge number of words that are known to everyone and can be used by all native speakers. They are called commonly used. But there are also words that are used either by people of some profession, or by representatives of some social group (for example, schoolchildren), or by residents of some locality. In the latter case, we are talking about dialect words. This material is covered in school in 6th grade.
What are dialect words
Groups of words that have a limited scope of use are formed according to different principles. For example, professional words are used by those who are engaged in one or another activity (“work program” - teachers, “reisfeder” - draftsmen, etc.). Among the groups of non-common vocabulary there is also a dialect one. Dialect words are those words that are used in speech by residents of any region where they have their own dialect (dialect) of the Russian language. We are talking specifically about the Russian language. If the region is located on the border with territory inhabited by speakers of another language (it does not matter whether it is a Russian autonomous republic or a neighboring state), lexical exchange is inevitable. But still, the words that have already entered the Russian language and become Russified are words of the Russian language.
In the past, dialects varied much more, but with the spread of radio and television, the language became more unified.
How to find a dialect word in a dictionary?
In the explanatory dictionary, dialect words are given with the mark “Region.”
There are dictionaries for specific dialects; they are issued for dialectologists.
Many interesting words and expressions can be found in the famous dictionary of V. I. Dahl.
Vladimir Ivanovich Dahl, a Dane by birth, made a tremendous contribution to the study of the Russian language: he devoted his entire life to the creation of the “Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language,” collecting many invaluable materials.
Examples of dialect words
Morok - cloud
Guy - oak grove
Bayat - talk
Birch - patterned
Antled - glazed
Hostel - feast
Safe - bold
How dialect words are used in a language
Dialect words lie outside the Russian literary language. If so, they cannot be used in texts of most styles.
It is acceptable to use a separate expressive word in a journalistic style text.
A work of fiction is a completely different matter. Dialect words in literature are a means of speech characterization of the hero and an expressive feature of the author's style.
An example is the poems of Sergei Yesenin, especially the early ones.
V.P. Astafiev was distinguished by his brilliant command of dialect vocabulary. This was especially evident in the novel “The Fish King” and the dilogy “Cursed and Killed.”
What have we learned?
Dialectisms are words related to vocabulary of limited use. They are used by residents of any region. In dictionaries such words are placed with the mark “region”. Dialect words are widely used in fiction as a means of expressiveness and an element of speech characteristics.
Russian language
VOCABULARY
10. Vocabulary of the Russian language from the point of view of usage
Common words.
Common words- these are words that are used by all people, regardless of profession and place of residence. It is these words that make up the main part of the vocabulary of the Russian language. People need them for everyday communication; common words are familiar and understandable to everyone, for example: tree, concert, brainy, count etc.
Obsolete words (archaisms and historicisms).
Outdated words- these are words that have fallen out of active use and have ceased to be relevant for a given era. Such words are rarely used in everyday communication and are not always understood by people. Among outdated words, archaisms and historicisms are distinguished.
Archaisms- these are outdated words that denote the names of objects or phenomena that currently exist, but for some reason have been replaced by other, later names.
Types of archaisms:
1)
phonetic, for example: number - number, eighteen - eighteen
;
2)
accentological, for example: siў mvol - symbol, muў language - music
;
3)
morphological, for example: at the beginning of the 20th century the word piano
was a feminine noun, but in modern Russian this word is used in the masculine gender;
4)
word-forming, for example: fisherman - fisherman, energetic - energetic
;
5)
lexical, for example: right hand - right hand
;
6)
Some words may lose any meaning. In such cases, the word becomes archaic, for example: the word is outdated vulgar
in meaning "popular".
Historicisms- these are outdated words that denote the names of objects, phenomena, and concepts that have disappeared from modern life, for example: chain mail, loophole, svetets, zemstvo, arquebus . Historicisms, unlike archaisms, do not have synonyms in modern Russian. This is explained by the fact that the very realities for which these words were names have become obsolete. Historicisms can be associated with very distant eras ( veche, oprichnik ) and with relatively recent events ( tax in kind, check ).
Neologisms.
Neologisms- these are new words that have not yet become familiar and everyday names of the corresponding objects and concepts, for example: teleconference, videophone . The emergence of new words is associated with the historical development of society, the development of science and technology, literature and art, and with changes in everyday life. For example, in the 70s words such as felt-tip pen, florist, simulator, TV show, photo frame . But now we cannot call these words neologisms, since they have already become familiar in everyday communication. There are general linguistic and proprietary neologisms. A general linguistic neologism quickly assimilates into the language, “takes root” in it, and its freshness quickly ceases to be felt, for example: computer . But original neologisms cannot become part of the language, since they exist only within a certain context, for example: poetry, sickly (V. Mayakovsky).
Neologisms include not only completely new, but also previously known words that have acquired new meanings. For example: in recent years the word has become widespread scenario in the meaning of “plan, scheme for holding an event, exhibition, etc.” In addition, the words have returned to our vocabulary mercy, charity and etc.
The vocabulary of the Russian language, depending on the nature of its functioning, is divided into two large groups: commonly used and vocabulary of limited use. The first group consists of words, the use of which is not limited either by the profession of people or the territory of distribution, they are understandable and accessible to every native speaker and can be used both in oral and written speech. Such vocabulary forms a stable basis for the vocabulary of the modern Russian language. This includes the names of concepts or phenomena from different areas of society: economic, political, cultural, everyday. It should be noted that commonly used vocabulary can be replenished with words of limited use. But also, such words may fall out of general use [Kalinin 1966: 123].
Common vocabulary is the necessary lexical material for expressing thoughts. On the basis of this material, further enrichment and replenishment of the vocabulary of the Russian language takes place. Most words included in common vocabulary can be used in all styles of speech. Also, they can belong to different parts of speech. This includes: nouns, adjectives, verbs, pronouns, adverbs, etc. [Kalinin 1966: 122]
There are several approaches to defining common words. Grachev M.A., Zhurakhovskaya V.D., Beregovskaya E.M. and many more other linguists divide the entire vocabulary of the Russian language into non-literary and literary. Literary ones include:
colloquial vocabulary;
neutral vocabulary;
book vocabulary.
Colloquial vocabulary includes words that are used in casual conversation and give the speech an unofficial sound, but such words are not “rude”. Spoken words are closer to neutral vocabulary than other types of spoken words. But colloquial words are not interstyle, not neutral: they are not used in strictly official, business writing. Colloquial vocabulary is devoid of dialectical features, therefore it is very different from book vocabulary [Kalinin 1966: 158].
Neutral vocabulary is the basis of the vocabulary of the Russian language, which includes various parts of speech: nouns, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, interjections, etc. Words related to neutral vocabulary can be used in any type of speech: in the speech of a speaker, in casual conversation, as well as in all genres of journalism and fiction. Therefore, such vocabulary can be called interstyle, i.e. one that caters for all speech styles. Neutral vocabulary is intended for non-judgmental designation of concepts and objects of everyday life. She is not expressive and lacks social and emotional judgment.
Book vocabulary includes words that are difficult to assign to any type of written language or to any genre. Such words are used primarily in written speech. Book words are found in journalism, and in official documents, and in business papers, as well as in scientific literature [Kalinin 1966: 165].
There are words that are strictly bookish and moderately bookish. Moderately bookish vocabulary includes participles and gerunds. They are rare in casual, ordinary speech. Also, this may include some auxiliary parts of speech: conjunctions, prepositions, etc. Purely book vocabulary mainly includes borrowed words or words that have borrowed roots [Kalinin 1966: 165].
The Russian language has several lexical layers, each of which differs in its scope of use and purpose. First of all, the vocabulary of a language is divided into two large groups: those that are nationwide and those that have a limited area of use. Let's get acquainted with examples of commonly used words in the Russian language. Such vocabulary is used both in written and oral speech in a wide variety of situations.
Terminology
Common words, examples of which will be given below, are the main wealth of the language. They are understandable to everyone, regardless of place of residence, type of activity or profession. Without such a layer, which makes up the lexical core of a language, its very existence would be impossible.
Examples of words in common vocabulary are: cat, apartment, illusion, literature, walk, run, beautiful, smart, wide, green, we, they, fast, fun. As you can see, this includes words of various parts of speech, using which you can describe any life situation.
Varieties
Examples of commonly used words are quite varied. First of all, a group of stylistically neutral ones is distinguished, which can be used by native speakers in any style of speech. Features of styles and examples of vocabulary are presented in the table.
a brief description of | Examples of common words |
|
Colloquial | Designed for everyday communication | I understand, teacher, school, pencil, preparation, dishes, mechanism, parents, lessons |
Accuracy, reliability, logic. The style is rich in terms | Evolution, parallelism, outline, meridian, hypotenuse |
|
Used for writing memos, protocols, and similar documents | The undersigned, statement, receipt, undertake, attach, circumstances, due to |
|
Journalistic | The purpose of use is not only to inform, but also to have an emotional impact | As reported, expected, parliamentarian, elections, construction, construction, opening, expected |
Art | Used to write literary works | Heartfelt, exalt, overthrown, majestic |
So, regardless of the style of speech, the main purpose of popular words is to organize communication. Thanks to them, native speakers understand each other and can express their thoughts both in oral dialogue and in writing.
There are several difficult points. Thus, the words inherent in the scientific style, in particular terms, may not be clear to everyone, but nevertheless, they relate specifically to the national layer. Why? Because the possibility of understanding one or another of them depends on a person’s education, and not on his belonging to any profession or occupation. Thus, the literary term “epithet” may be unclear only to those who did not study well at school.
Expressing emotions
In terms of use, commonly used words, examples of which are given below, are divided into the following groups:
- neutral (mom, peace, run, good, emotion, cat, apartment, like, green, quality and many others);
- stylistically colored (pretty, some water, little time, old lady).
If the first group of words simply conveys information, then the second expresses the author’s attitude. Let's compare:
- The water in the source was cool.
- The water in the spring was cool.
The first sentence has a neutral stylistic connotation, while the second is more emotional - the author shows that the water he drank from the source is very good.
Also, through the use of words, negative shades of meaning can be conveyed. Let's compare:
- His eyes sparkled menacingly.
- He flashed his eyes menacingly.
Differences from dialectisms
Let's look at examples of common words and dialect words, as well as their differences. For ease of perception, the data is placed in a table.
How to differentiate between the commonly used lexical layer and dialect words?
- Scope of use. If common words are understandable to everyone and are used everywhere, then dialect vocabulary is present in the speech of certain groups of people living in villages and villages, that is, it is territorially limited. Thus, an educated person who studies dialects can know well what the words “guska” (goose), “tsibulya” (bow), “drobina” (ladder) mean, and even use them in his lectures. But these words will still be dialectal, since they are not used in live colloquial speech, being replaced by literary synonyms.
- Lexical dialectisms characteristic of a particular area have a literary synonym and can be replaced with it: “sash” - belt, “pyatry” - attic, “veksha” - squirrel.
There are also ethnographic dialectisms that do not have synonyms - commonly used words, examples are: “manarka” - this is what a woman’s coat is called in Tatarstan; “Shanezhki” - potato pies. These words, as well as the phenomena they signify, are found only in certain dialects.
The meaning of dialectisms
Why do native speakers need local dialects? The use of such words often helps authors of literary texts create special poetics, convey mood, and more vividly express the image of a character. At the same time, writers try not to oversaturate their text with dialectisms, otherwise readers will not understand much. Similar vocabulary was actively used:
- Turgenev (Biryuk is an unsociable person, the top is a ravine).
- Mamin-Sibiryak (feet - shoes, raft - fence, battle - torment).
- Sholokhov (clean - pasture, cut - hit).
- Yesenin (sled of the lake - edge).
- Prishvin (Elan - a swampy area of the swamp).
Most often, dialect vocabulary is used in the speech of characters and is supplied with author's comments and explanations so that the reader understands what is being said.
Jargonisms
We looked at what words are called commonly used. Examples were also given. Now let’s figure out what jargon is, what its role is and the specifics of its use.
This is a special layer of vocabulary that is used in the speech of certain circles of people:
- Youth: “diskach” (party, disco), “dude” (girl), “dude” (young man), “ancestors” (parents).
- Computer scientists: “buggy” (works with problems), “prog” (PC program), “clave” (keyboard), “hack” (crack).
- Prisoners: “lean back” (free yourself), “ksiva” (passport), “fraer” (a former prisoner who is outside the prison walls), “absentee” (a girl who is waiting for a prisoner).
- Schoolchildren: “teacher” (teacher), “couple” (grade “2”), “nerd” (excellent student, diligent student), “spur” (cheat sheet).
Many of these words are understandable to native speakers, others remain a mystery to them, but a distinctive feature of jargon is their use in speech by a certain circle of people.
Meaning of jargons
Such words have a bright emotional connotation, so they are often used by writers to create a vivid image of a character. In oral speech, they help people in a certain circle to better understand each other.
Let's give examples of commonly used words and jargon: “hawk” - food, “donkey, donkey” - Internet Explorer browser, “teapot” - an inexperienced PC user, “mesaga” - message.
This vocabulary makes communication between representatives of a certain circle more convenient and simpler.
Professionalisms
Let us give examples of commonly used and non-commonly used words, professionalisms present in the speech of representatives of certain professions:
- In the field of printing, you can find “legs” - quotation marks, “heading” - a title.
- Hunters use the words “hang on the tail” - to pursue prey with hounds, “pest” - an old bear, “log” - the tail of a wolf.
- Police officers also use professionalisms: “lost” - a missing person; “hanging fruit” is a case that cannot be investigated.
This vocabulary is understandable only to a certain circle of people united by professional activities.
Variety of words
Here are examples of sentences with common words (grade 5):
- On the table there was a vase with beautiful flowers: roses, carnations and lilies.
- Everyone who wants to be happy must study well.
- Mom prepared a delicious salad and baked buns.
Every word in these sentences is understandable to any native speaker. Without them, communication, both oral and written, would be impossible. That is why such a lexical layer represents the richness of the language, its foundation. Of course, dialectisms, jargons and professionalisms are interesting in their own way, but without them the Russian language could exist. And without commonly used words, examples of which were given above, this would have been impossible - people would have ceased to understand each other.
The popular vocabulary includes a huge number of words of all parts of speech, both independent and functional. They are used in written and spoken communication, to create scientific documents and journal articles. The more such words a person knows, the more rich and interesting his vocabulary is, the brighter and more expressively he can express his opinion.
We looked at common words, example words and their meanings. This lexical layer is very important, since it is thanks to such words that native speakers have the opportunity to freely communicate and understand each other. There are a lot of similar words, they relate to different parts of speech, they can be either neutral or have a certain stylistic connotation, making communication richer and more interesting.