Russian Translation(s) & Details for 'worsen'

English Word: worsen

Key Russian Translations:

• ухудшать [ʊˈxʊdʂətʲ] - [Verb, Informal, Used in everyday contexts]
• ухудшиться [ʊˈxʊdʂɨt͡sə] - [Verb, Reflexive, Formal, Used to describe self-worsening states]

Frequency: Medium (Common in discussions about health, economy, or conditions, but not as frequent as basic verbs like "быть").

Difficulty: B1 (Intermediate; requires understanding of verb conjugations and reflexive forms, with ухудшать being slightly easier than ухудшиться for beginners).

Pronunciation (Russian):

ухудшать: [ʊˈxʊdʂətʲ]

ухудшиться: [ʊˈxʊdʂɨt͡sə]

Note on ухудшать: The "ш" sound is a retroflex fricative, which can be challenging for English speakers; it sounds like "sh" in "she" but with a more curled tongue. Pronounce with stress on the second syllable.

Note on ухудшиться: This reflexive form adds a soft "s" sound at the end; practice the suffix "-ся" as [sʲə] for accuracy.

Audio: []

Meanings and Usage:

To make something worse or more serious (e.g., a condition, situation)

Translation(s) & Context:

• ухудшать - Used in active voice for causing deterioration, in informal or neutral contexts like health or weather reports.
• ухудшиться - Used in reflexive voice for something worsening on its own, in formal writing or discussions.

Usage Examples:

• Экономическая ситуация в стране продолжает ухудшать из-за инфляции.

  The economic situation in the country continues to worsen due to inflation.

• Если вы не примете меры, ваше здоровье может ухудшиться.

  If you don't take measures, your health might worsen.

• Погода ухудшает наши планы на выходные.

  The weather is worsening our plans for the weekend.

• Без вмешательства, конфликт ухудшился до уровня гражданской войны.

  Without intervention, the conflict worsened to the level of a civil war.

• Его настроение ухудшилось после неудачного дня.

  His mood worsened after an unsuccessful day.

To deteriorate gradually (e.g., a state or quality)

Translation(s) & Context:

• ухудшиться - Common in reflexive contexts for passive worsening, such as in medical or environmental discussions.

Usage Examples:

• Состояние реки ухудшилось из-за промышленных отходов.

  The state of the river has worsened due to industrial waste.

• Его зрение ухудшилось с возрастом, но он не жалуется.

  His vision has worsened with age, but he doesn't complain.

• Отношения между странами ухудшились после дипломатического инцидента.

  Relations between the countries worsened after a diplomatic incident.

Russian Forms/Inflections:

Both ухудшать and ухудшиться are verbs, so they follow Russian verb conjugation patterns. ухудшать is an imperfective verb, while ухудшиться is its reflexive counterpart. Russian verbs conjugate based on tense, aspect, person, and number. ухудшать is from the first conjugation group and has irregular elements in some forms.

Note: These verbs do not change for number in the past tense like adjectives do; instead, gender agreement applies.

Russian Synonyms/Antonyms:

• Synonyms:
  • усугублять (usugublyat') - More formal, emphasizes intensification.
  • обострять (obostryat') - Used for conflicts or conditions, with a nuance of sharpening.
• Antonyms:
  • улучшать (uluchshat') - To improve.
  • стабилизировать (stabilizirovat') - To stabilize, preventing change.

Related Phrases:

• ухудшать ситуацию - To worsen the situation; often used in crisis management contexts.
• ухудшиться из-за - To worsen because of; indicates a cause, e.g., in health discussions.
• экономическая ухудшение - Economic worsening; a common phrase in news and reports.

Usage Notes:

• ухудшать directly corresponds to the transitive use of "worsen" in English, where an agent causes the change, while ухудшиться is for intransitive or reflexive uses.
• In formal contexts, prefer ухудшиться for self-worsening to match Russian's aspect system.
• Be cautious with aspect: ухудшать is imperfective (ongoing process), so pair it with contexts implying duration.
• When choosing between translations, use ухудшать if there's an external cause; otherwise, ухудшиться.

Common Errors:

• Error: Using ухудшать reflexively without "-ся", e.g., saying "ситуация ухудшать" instead of "ситуация ухудшается".
  Correct: "Ситуация ухудшается" (The situation is worsening).
  Explanation: Russian requires the reflexive particle "-ся" for intransitive actions; omitting it changes the meaning or makes it grammatically incorrect.
• Error: Confusing with similar verbs like улучшать, leading to antonym misuse, e.g., saying "ухудшать здоровье" when meaning to improve it.
  Correct: Use улучшать for improvement.
  Explanation: Pay attention to prefixes; "у-" in ухудшать indicates worsening, while in улучшать it means improvement.

Cultural Notes:

In Russian culture and media, verbs like ухудшать are frequently used in discussions about economic instability or health crises, reflecting Russia's historical experiences with rapid changes. For instance, during economic reforms, phrases involving ухудшать became common in public discourse, highlighting a cultural emphasis on resilience amid adversity.

Related Concepts:

• стабильность (stabil'nost') - Stability.
• улучшение (uluchsheniye) - Improvement.
• кризис (krizis) - Crisis.