The simplest way to express regret in Russian is to use the word “жаль” (jal, which can be roughly translated as "it’s a pity"). You usually use it to state that there’s something you regret or don’t like (for example “жаль, что сегодня понедельник” - “it’s a pity that today is Monday”), or to respond to such a statement. Saying “мне жаль” (roughly translates as “I’m sorry”) is a short, simple way to console somebody, and it usually implies that you really mean it.
In case you don’t or want to be neutral or even ironic, there are a few expressions for you to choose from. First of all, there’s the word “увы” that I’ve already mentioned in one of the earlier articles. It’s really an all-around expression that lets you say something without actually saying anything, so once again - be sure to remember it.
A more ironic way to comment on someone’s troubles is to use the word “беда” (beda). It is the Russian word for “trouble”, and in this case, it means that you don’t consider whatever’s happened as a serious issue, similar to saying “and you call this trouble?”. In a way, this is similar to “бывает” roughly translated as "crap happens" - another useful expression that you can find in our previous articles.
If you do think that whatever is bothering the other person is something serious, you might well find the following words quite useful.
Засада (zasada), literally an ambush, is said about something that’s quite unexpected and definitely inconvenient. “I just learned that I have to get it done by tomorrow,” - “Засада!”. Nevertheless, it rarely means something really bad.
Палево (palevo), on the other hand, is a slang word that’s used for something very suspicious, associated with potential problems, or even illegal. The expression stems from “паленый” - burned and smelling. Much as засада, this single word is enough to describe your attitude towards something.
Мрак (mrak) can be translated as “gloom” or “darkness”, but the word is generally associated with hopelessness. The word is often used to comment on a situation so bad that you don’t really know how to react to it.
Well, these few expressions aren’t much, but on the bright side, they are totally safe to use. Obviously, there are many stronger expressions in the Russian language, especially the obscene ones - but this is an entirely different subject!
See you next time! Yours, ITMO.NEWS.
