Who does what in Russian
A workshop, the owner talks to a person who answered an ad in Russian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Расскажите, кем вы работали?» — Tell me, what work have you done?; «Бухгалтером, а ещё успел поработать секретарём.» — As an accountant, and I also found time to work as a secretary.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a workshop, the owner talks to a person who answered an ad. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- Расскажите, кем вы работали?Rasskazhite, kem vy rabotali?Tell me, what work have you done?
- Бухгалтером, а ещё успел поработать секретарём.Bukhgalterom, a eshchyo uspel porabotat sekretaryom.As an accountant, and I also found time to work as a secretary.
- Кто был вашим начальником на прошлом месте?Kto byl vashim nachalnikom na proshlom meste?Who was your boss at your last job?
- Предприниматель. Каждый месяц я отчитывался перед ним.Predprinimatel. Kazhdyy mesyats ya otchityvalsya pered nim.An entrepreneur. Every month I reported to him.
- Сможете руководить двумя помощниками?Smozhete rukovodit dvumya pomoshchnikami?Will you be able to supervise two assistants?
- Да, у меня уже были подчинённые.Da, u menya uzhe byli podchinyonnye.Yes, I have had people reporting to me before.
- Рабочее место у вас будет здесь, у окна.Rabochee mesto u vas budet zdes, u okna.Your workplace will be here, by the window.
- Когда ждать ответа?Kogda zhdat otveta?When should I expect an answer?
Lines one by one
| Russian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Расскажите, кем вы работали? | Rasskazhite, kem vy rabotali? | Tell me, what work have you done? |
| Бухгалтером, а ещё успел поработать секретарём. | Bukhgalterom, a eshchyo uspel porabotat sekretaryom. | As an accountant, and I also found time to work as a secretary. |
| Кто был вашим начальником на прошлом месте? | Kto byl vashim nachalnikom na proshlom meste? | Who was your boss at your last job? |
| Предприниматель. Каждый месяц я отчитывался перед ним. | Predprinimatel. Kazhdyy mesyats ya otchityvalsya pered nim. | An entrepreneur. Every month I reported to him. |
| Сможете руководить двумя помощниками? | Smozhete rukovodit dvumya pomoshchnikami? | Will you be able to supervise two assistants? |
| Да, у меня уже были подчинённые. | Da, u menya uzhe byli podchinyonnye. | Yes, I have had people reporting to me before. |
| Рабочее место у вас будет здесь, у окна. | Rabochee mesto u vas budet zdes, u okna. | Your workplace will be here, by the window. |
| Когда ждать ответа? | Kogda zhdat otveta? | When should I expect an answer? |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and noticeably so. The link turns up study after study, and together those studies cover almost twenty thousand people.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Russian in this situation?
“Расскажите, кем вы работали?” (Rasskazhite, kem vy rabotali?) — Tell me, what work have you done? The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.