Russian Translation(s) & Details for 'bad'

English Word: bad

Key Russian Translations:

• плохой [ˈploxəj] - [General, Neutral]
• дурной [dʊrˈnoj] - [Informal, Often Negative Connotation]
• скверный [ˈskvʲernɨj] - [Formal, Literary]

Frequency: High (especially "плохой")

Difficulty: A2 (Beginner-Intermediate for "плохой"), B1-B2 (Intermediate for "дурной" and "скверный")

Pronunciation (Russian):

плохой: [ˈploxəj]

Note on плохой: Stress falls on the first syllable. The 'х' sound is a voiceless fricative, similar to the 'ch' in Scottish "loch".

дурной: [dʊrˈnoj]

Note on дурной: Stress on the second syllable. The 'р' is rolled slightly.

скверный: [ˈskvʲernɨj]

Note on скверный: Stress on the first syllable. The 'е' is pronounced as 'ye'.

Audio: []

Meanings and Usage:

1. Poor Quality or Condition

Translation(s) & Context:

• плохой - Used for general poor quality or unfavorable conditions (e.g., bad weather, bad work).
• скверный - Often used in formal or literary contexts to describe something very poor or unpleasant.

Usage Examples:

• Этот фильм очень плохой.

  This movie is very bad.

• У меня сегодня плохое настроение.

  I’m in a bad mood today.

• Погода была скверная весь день.

  The weather was bad all day.

2. Morally Wrong or Harmful

Translation(s) & Context:

• дурной - Often implies morally bad behavior or a negative trait (informal).
• плохой - Can also be used in moral contexts, though less intense.

Usage Examples:

• У него дурные привычки.

  He has bad habits.

• Это был плохой поступок.

  That was a bad deed.

Russian Forms/Inflections:

плохой (Adjective): Declines based on gender, number, and case. Below is the nominative case table:

Gender/Number	Form
Masculine Singular	плохой
Feminine Singular	плохая
Neuter Singular	плохое
Plural	плохие

дурной (Adjective): Follows similar declension rules as "плохой".

скверный (Adjective): Also declines by gender, number, and case, with similar patterns.

Russian Synonyms/Antonyms:

Synonyms for "плохой":

• нехороший
• ужасный
• отвратительный

Note: "ужасный" and "отвратительный" are stronger and more negative than "плохой".

Antonyms for "плохой":

• хороший
• отличный

Related Phrases:

• плохая погода - Bad weather.
• дурной пример - Bad example (often moral or behavioral).
• скверное дело - Bad business or situation (formal).

Usage Notes:

• "плохой" is the most versatile and commonly used translation for "bad", suitable for most contexts like quality, condition, or mood.
• "дурной" often carries a connotation of moral wrongdoing or foolishness and is more informal.
• "скверный" is more literary and used in formal or written contexts to describe something unpleasant or of very poor quality.

Common Errors:

• Error: Using "дурной" to describe poor quality of an object (e.g., "дурной телефон" for "bad phone").

  Correction: Use "плохой" instead: "плохой телефон". "Дурной" is better for behavior or traits, like "дурной характер" (bad temper).

• Error: Forgetting to decline adjectives based on gender or number, e.g., saying "плохой книга" instead of "плохая книга".

  Correction: Match the adjective to the noun’s gender: "книга" (book) is feminine, so use "плохая".

Cultural Notes:

In Russian, describing something as "плохой" can sometimes be softened or used politely to avoid harsher criticism, much like "not great" in English. However, "дурной" often implies a stronger judgment, sometimes tied to superstition or traditional views (e.g., "дурной глаз" - evil eye).

Related Concepts:

• ужасный (terrible)
• неприятный (unpleasant)
• неудачный (unsuccessful)