English

содержать семью

“содержать семью” (soderzhat semyu) — to support a family in Russian. Phrase, level B1. Odnoy zarplatoy trudno soderzhat semyu — "it is hard to support a family on one salary" — to keep the family fed, literally to hold with you; the soderzhanie of a flat and of a book are kin: a house or a thought held. In a live sentence: “Одной зарплатой трудно содержать семью” — It is hard to support a family on one salary.

Updated September 1, 2026 · Lingofly

In short

“to support a family” in Russian
Written in Russianсодержать семью
Read in Latin letterssoderzhat semyu
Translationto support a family
Part of speechphrase
LevelB1

Why it looks that way

Odnoy zarplatoy trudno soderzhat semyu — "it is hard to support a family on one salary" — to keep the family fed, literally to hold with you; the soderzhanie of a flat and of a book are kin: a house or a thought held.

A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.

In a live sentence

A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.

  • Одной зарплатой трудно содержать семью
    Odnoy zarplatoy trudno soderzhat semyu
    It is hard to support a family on one salary

How not to forget this word

Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.

Frequently asked

How do you say “to support a family” in Russian?

«содержать семью», read “soderzhat semyu”. In a live sentence: “Одной зарплатой трудно содержать семью” — It is hard to support a family on one salary. Phrase, level B1; written with the characters с, о, д, е, р, ж, а, т, ь, с, е, м…

How is “содержать семью” written in Latin letters?

soderzhat semyu. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.

Why does this word look the way it does?

Odnoy zarplatoy trudno soderzhat semyu — "it is hard to support a family on one salary" — to keep the family fed, literally to hold with you; the soderzhanie of a flat and of a book are kin: a house or a thought held. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.

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