To take it or to wait in Russian
A kitchen late in the evening, two people discuss a job offer in another city in Russian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Два варианта, и оба так себе.» — Two options, and both are so-so; «Так себе — не значит плохие. Объясни причину сомнений.» — So-so does not mean bad. Explain the reason for your doubts.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a kitchen late in the evening, two people discuss a job offer in another city. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- Два варианта, и оба так себе.Dva varianta, i oba tak sebe.Two options, and both are so-so.
- Так себе — не значит плохие. Объясни причину сомнений.Tak sebe — ne znachit plokhie. Obyasni prichinu somneniy.So-so does not mean bad. Explain the reason for your doubts.
- Если соглашусь, мне придётся ездить каждый день за город.Esli soglashus, mne pridyotsya ezdit kazhdyy den za gorod.If I agree, I will have to commute out of town every day.
- С одной стороны, дорога дальняя, с другой стороны, платят выше.S odnoy storony, doroga dalnyaya, s drugoy storony, platyat vyshe.On the one hand the road is long; on the other hand the pay is higher.
- Не уверен, что разница в деньгах так велика.Ne uveren, chto raznitsa v dengakh tak velika.I'm not sure the difference in money is that big.
- Такая возможность выпадает не каждый день, жаль её упустить.Takaya vozmozhnost vypadaet ne kazhdyy den, zhal eyo upustit.Such a chance does not come every day; it would be a pity to miss it.
- Хотя ты прав, решаться тяжело.Khotya ty prav, reshatsya tyazhelo.Though you are right, deciding is hard.
- Реши к пятнице: рано или поздно выбирать всё равно придётся.Reshi k pyatnitse: rano ili pozdno vybirat vsyo ravno pridyotsya.Decide by Friday: sooner or later you will have to choose anyway.
Lines one by one
| Russian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Два варианта, и оба так себе. | Dva varianta, i oba tak sebe. | Two options, and both are so-so. |
| Так себе — не значит плохие. Объясни причину сомнений. | Tak sebe — ne znachit plokhie. Obyasni prichinu somneniy. | So-so does not mean bad. Explain the reason for your doubts. |
| Если соглашусь, мне придётся ездить каждый день за город. | Esli soglashus, mne pridyotsya ezdit kazhdyy den za gorod. | If I agree, I will have to commute out of town every day. |
| С одной стороны, дорога дальняя, с другой стороны, платят выше. | S odnoy storony, doroga dalnyaya, s drugoy storony, platyat vyshe. | On the one hand the road is long; on the other hand the pay is higher. |
| Не уверен, что разница в деньгах так велика. | Ne uveren, chto raznitsa v dengakh tak velika. | I'm not sure the difference in money is that big. |
| Такая возможность выпадает не каждый день, жаль её упустить. | Takaya vozmozhnost vypadaet ne kazhdyy den, zhal eyo upustit. | Such a chance does not come every day; it would be a pity to miss it. |
| Хотя ты прав, решаться тяжело. | Khotya ty prav, reshatsya tyazhelo. | Though you are right, deciding is hard. |
| Реши к пятнице: рано или поздно выбирать всё равно придётся. | Reshi k pyatnitse: rano ili pozdno vybirat vsyo ravno pridyotsya. | Decide by Friday: sooner or later you will have to choose anyway. |
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?
“Два варианта, и оба так себе.” (Dva varianta, i oba tak sebe.) — Two options, and both are so-so. 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.