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Khoff Posted 21 years ago
Vocabulary
Roller coasters and Russian roulette
I think I've heard that what we call a roller coaster in English is called "Russian mountains" in French and Spanish, but "American mountains" in Russian. I am wondering what Russian roulette is called in Russian, or in any other languages. Can anyone help? Thanks!
Here's the definition from Cambridge dictionaries online:
Russian roulette noun
a very dangerous game of chance where each player aims at their own head with a gun which has one bullet in it and five empty chambers (= spaces where bullets could go):
(I know this is not actually a question about English - please don't ban me from the forum!)
Here's the definition from Cambridge dictionaries online:
Russian roulette noun
a very dangerous game of chance where each player aims at their own head with a gun which has one bullet in it and five empty chambers (= spaces where bullets could go):
(I know this is not actually a question about English - please don't ban me from the forum!)
Top answer
Hi, Khoff! We do have a Russian roulette in French; the meaning does correspond to what you've written. It is also any kind of game, business, ...
- Hi, Khoff!
- We do have a Russian roulette in French; the meaning does correspond to what you've written.
- It is also any kind of game, business, ...
- ) Now, roller coaster; we do call them "Russian mountains", but it's a bit old-fashioned.
- I mean there are new attractions of the kind, like the "Grand Huit" (big 8)
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10 Answers
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Hi, Khoff!
We do have a Russian roulette in French; the meaning does correspond to what you've written. It is also any kind of game, business, ... where the odds are against you, and the issue might be severe/bad if you lose (is it correct?)
Now, roller coaster; we do call them "Russian mountains", but it's a bit old-fashioned. I mean there are new attractions of the kind, like th
We do have a Russian roulette in French; the meaning does correspond to what you've written. It is also any kind of game, business, ... where the odds are against you, and the issue might be severe/bad if you lose (is it correct?)
Now, roller coaster; we do call them "Russian mountains", but it's a bit old-fashioned. I mean there are new attractions of the kind, like th
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Thanks, Pieanne! Yes, you're right, Russian roulette can also be used figuratively to describe any very risky enterprise. --khoff
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Oh! sorry - I think it would sound better to say, "the result might be severe..." rather than "issue."
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Of course, in real Russian roulette the issue IS life or death! I think, though, "issue" is so commonly used now to mean "the point in question, the current subject" that its literal meaning of "result, effect, outcome" is not as frequently used, and might not even be understood.
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Russian roulette is also called Russian roulette in Dutch. I read a book once that was translated from Russian and in the book they called Russian roulette 'American roulette', but I don't know if that's how it's really called in Russian or that the writer just called it that.
A rollercoaster is called either a rollercoaster or an 'achtbaan' (which means something like 'eight track').
A rollercoaster is called either a rollercoaster or an 'achtbaan' (which means something like 'eight track').
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"Russian roulette" is still called Russian roulette (Russkaya Ruletka) in Russian.
You are 100% correct about "American mountains" or "Amerikanskie gorki". That's how we call a roller coaster.
You are 100% correct about "American mountains" or "Amerikanskie gorki". That's how we call a roller coaster.
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Thank you, TinyPixie! Even though it's been quite a while since I asked that question, I am still very happy to get an answer.
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