Lesson 13 - Ukrainian Made Easy

Alright, welcome to Lesson 13 of UME. We know that cognates are words that sound very similar between two languages and have the same meaning. But there's also something known as a false cognate. Those are words that sound similar between two languages but have totally different meanings. For example, listen to this Ukrainian word:

Вінегрет

That sounds like the name of a popular salad dressing, doesn't it? Listen again:

Вінегрет

Well, if you ask a Ukrainian for Вінегрет he'll hand you a salad made of beets, pickles, potatoes, carrots, and onions. The word vinaigrette in English and Вінегрет in Ukrainian are false cognates. They do sound the same, but they represent different things.

So, listen to and repeat these four Ukrainian words. Three are actual cognates, but one is a false cognate. Ready?

парк
центр
кафе
магазин

Here's a hint: They are all common locations in a city or town. One more time...

парк
центр
кафе
магазин

Let's hear them in context. The first was парк.

A large grassy area in the middle of a city is called a парк.

So, in English we call it a park, and in Ukrainian they of course roll that R: парк

Next was: центр

The main, downtown part of a city is called the центр.

Hear how that's starting with a T -- S sound? tsss-entr

Try saying: What's up? ....what's....ts...tssssentr

So we say "the downtown area" or the "city center" and in Ukrainian they say just: центр

Then we heard: кафе

A relaxed eating establishment that focuses on lunch rather than dinner is called a кафе.

In English we say: cafe, and in Ukrainian the vowels change slightly: кафе

And finally we heard the false cognate: магазин

Any building where products are bought and sold is called a магазин.

So, the Ukrainian word магазин translates as store in English. It's a false cognate.

Ok, quiz time. Of those four locations, where might you go to have lunch?

В кафе

Where might you go to play frisbee?

В парк

Where would you go to buy something?

В магазин

And where would you go to be in the heart of the city?

В центр

As we let those sink in, let's review the material from the last episode. So, imagine you're showing your friend photos from your trip to Ukraine. Say...

This is Odessa.

Це Одеса.

I love Odessa!

Я люблю Одесу!

I like Kiev but I love Lviv.

Мені подобається Київ, але я люблю Львів.

Ask your friend: Do you like beet and potato salad?

Тобі подобається Вінегрет?

I don't see you.

Я тебе не бачу.

Your Ukrainian cousin Sasha has just given you a gift of salo. So grateful, you hug him and say:

Sasha, I love you!

Саша я тебе люблю!

So you're holding the gift Sasha gave you. It's this little plastic bag and inside is some white thing the size and shape of a slab of butter. As you sniff it suspiciously, he informs you...

Це сало.

Ask him: Salo? What is that?

Сало? Що це?

He says...

Сало як бекон.

He said, Salo is like bacon. Imagine a slab of raw pig fat. That's salo. They usually slice it very thin and place it on bread. A kind of substitute for butter.

Okay, so...do you remember our four new words from today? Let's see. Tell me, where would you go to fly a kite?

в парк

Did you notice how the native speaker added a "ff" sound in front of парк? Listen again:

в парк

fff-park. That's because they're answering my question by saying, "to the park"

в парк

So, adding that "ff" sound, now: Where would you go to look at the city's tallest buildings?

в центр

Where would you go to buy a souvenir?

в магазин

Where would you go to have coffee and snacks?

в кафе

Just a heads up: There are some locations in Ukrainian which do not take this "v" sound. It's similar to English, really. We say: I'm on the beach. or: I'm on the golf course. But we don't say: I'm on the park. And I'm on the forest. We say "in" the park. I'm in the forest.

Just bear that in mind. Sometimes, as in English, Ukrainian uses на instead of в.

Alright. There are two more words I want to show you before we put everything together today. For now, just listen and repeat this first one:

Пішли!

One more time: Пішли!

Important point: Your brain does not want simply to be told what a word means. It wants instead to figure out the meaning for itself, based on how the word is being used. This is what's called Contextual Learning. So...

Imagine that you and some Ukrainian friends are in your home, standing by the front door. You're ready to head out, you've got your house keys in your hand. As you open the front door you call out to everyone:

Пішли!

...and then you gesture for them to follow you outside.

What might you have said in English? Probably:

Let's go! ...or...Let's head out!

And that's how Пішли! is used. It's a call to action, to get people to head off to some location.

And though it translates as "let's head out" or "let's go", the super-literal meaning is:

we / they headed out on foot

So, grammatically, it's a past-tense verb. For example, if someone has asked you where James and Natasha are, you might say:

James and Natasha headed off to the park.

Джеймс і Наташа пішли в парк.

Again пішли literally means "they headed out somewhere (on foot)." But the way you'll usually hear it and be using it is as a way to encourage your friends to head out. To get going.

So, grab your keys, open the door and tell your friend: Let's go!

Пішли!

And you might be wondering: How can that make sense? How can a past tense verb..."they headed out" function as a present tense command: Let's go!

Great question. And what you need to realize is that there are unspoken words here. The full sentence is actually: I want so that we headed out.

Я хочу, щоб ми пішли.

Everyone knows what the full sentence is, so they shorten it to just: Пішли!

English does the same thing. I mean, when you part company with your friends, do you often say:

I will see all of you later. Or do you just shorten it to: Later!

And getting back to our "Let's go" phrase, it doesn't have to be a command. It can also be a question: Пішли?

And here's the other word to learn: Куди?

Can you hear that it's a question? Listen again...

Куди?

So, there you are in your Kiev apartment, and you want to head out to grab a bite. You open the door and have this brief exchange with your friend:

Даша...Пішли!

Куди?

В кафе.

Or, imagine instead that you're in Lviv and you want to see the main downtown area. Your conversation would go like this...

Макс....Пішли!

Куди?

В центр.

How would you translate that? Max, let's go!

And he asks: Куди?

And you say, To the center.

So Куди? must mean "to where?" or, "to which location are we headed?"

Now you play both roles. Say: Let's head out! Then ask: Where to? And you say: To the store.

Пішли!

Куди?

В магазин.

Again. This time make it: To the park

Пішли!

Куди?

В парк.

And a quick note to those with more experience in the language: Yes, Ukrainians will also use the preposition "у" as in, "Куди?" -- "У парк!"

For our purposes though, we'll be sticking with "в."

Alright, let's get back to today's new words. Imagine your Ukrainian friend wants to buy a new phone and is ready to head out. What will he say to you as he opens his front door to leave?

Пішли!

Ask him: To where? as in, Where are we headed?

Куди?

To the store.

В магазин.

Tell him: Ok. Let's go!

Добре. Пішли!

One more. Tell your friend: I want coffee.

Я хочу каву.

She says: And I want a cappuccino.

І я хочу капучино.

Suggest: Let's go to Starbucks!

Пішли в Старбакс!

Ok. I love Starbucks. Let's go!

Добре. Я люблю Старбакс. Пішли!

Great job today. Given that we just learned to talk about where we're headed, next time we'll learn to talk about where we are. So, be sure you have today's new words and constructions on your flashcards, and I'll see you next lesson...

Of course, please go to UkrainianMadeEasy.com to get the transcript and the audio downloads.