Russian Translation(s) & Details for 'political'

English Word: political

Key Russian Translations:

• политический /pəlɪˈtʲit͡ɕɪskʲɪj/ - [Formal]

Frequency: High (commonly used in news, discussions, and academic contexts related to government and society)

Difficulty: B1 (Intermediate; requires understanding of Russian adjective declensions and political vocabulary, per CEFR standards)

Pronunciation (Russian):

политический: /pəlɪˈtʲit͡ɕɪskʲɪj/

Note on политический: The stress is on the fourth syllable ("tʲit͡ɕɪ"), and the "тʲ" sound is a palatalized 't', which can be challenging for English speakers. Pronunciation may vary slightly in fast speech.

Audio: []

Meanings and Usage:

Meaning 1: Relating to politics, government, or public affairs

Translation(s) & Context:

• политический - Used in formal contexts to describe anything connected to politics, such as policies, parties, or systems (e.g., in news articles or debates).

Usage Examples:

• В политической сфере происходят значительные изменения.

  In the political sphere, significant changes are occurring.

• Политический лидер выступил с речью на митинге.

  The political leader gave a speech at the rally.

• Эта реформа имеет глубокий политический подтекст.

  This reform has a deep political subtext.

• Политические дебаты часто бывают эмоциональными и ожесточенными.

  Political debates are often emotional and heated.

• Международные политические отношения влияют на экономику страны.

  International political relations influence the country's economy.

Russian Forms/Inflections:

Политический is an adjective in Russian, which means it inflects based on gender, number, and case. It follows the standard first-declension pattern for adjectives. Below is a table of its common forms:

Note: This adjective does not have irregular forms, making it relatively straightforward once basic declension rules are learned.

Russian Synonyms/Antonyms:

• Synonyms:
  • государственный (gosudarstvennyy) - More focused on state affairs, often interchangeable in bureaucratic contexts.
  • общественный (obshchestvennyy) - Emphasizes social or public aspects, with a slight nuance towards community involvement.
• Antonyms:
  • аполитичный (apoliticheskiy) - Meaning non-political or neutral.
  • частный (chastnyy) - Referring to private or non-public matters.

Related Phrases:

• Политическая система (politicheskaya sistema) - Refers to the political system; used in discussions of government structures.
• Политические партии (politicheskie partii) - Political parties; common in contexts of elections and ideology.
• Международная политика (mezhdunarodnaya politika) - International politics; often used in diplomatic or global affairs talks.

Usage Notes:

• Политический directly corresponds to the English "political" in most contexts, but it is more commonly used in formal writing or speech. English speakers should note that Russian adjectives must agree in gender, number, and case with the nouns they modify, which has no direct equivalent in English.
• In everyday conversation, Russians might prefer more specific terms depending on the context, such as using общественный for social-political issues to avoid sounding overly formal.
• When translating phrases, ensure the adjective is correctly inflected; for example, in a sentence like "political decision," it becomes "политическое решение" if "reshenie" (decision) is neuter.

Common Errors:

• Error: Using the base form "политический" without proper inflection, e.g., saying "в политический партия" instead of "в политической партии" (in the political party, genitive case).
  Correct: в политической партии
  Explanation: Russian requires adjectives to match the case of the noun; here, "партии" is genitive, so "политической" must be too.
• Error: Confusing it with similar words like "политический" and "политичный" (a misspelling); learners might omit the correct stress or palatalization.
  Correct: Always use "политический" with proper pronunciation.
  Explanation: This can lead to misunderstandings in spoken Russian, as stress affects meaning in some words.

Cultural Notes:

In Russian culture, words like "политический" often carry connotations of historical events, such as the Soviet era or modern geopolitics. For instance, discussions of "политическая система" frequently reference Russia's federal structure or past communist influences, which can add layers of nuance not present in English usage.

Related Concepts:

• экономический (ekonomicheskiy)
• социальный (sotsialnyy)
• идеологический (ideologicheskiy)