# Those little lexical gaps **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 11, 2014, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473 "2014-03-11T21:13:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/21 "2014-03-12T16:10:47Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > If I’m not mistaken, the Latin languages (Italian, French, Spanish) use the same word for “like” (as in liking another person who is your friend) and “love” (as in romantic love). I believe this is true in Hebrew too. Thus, it’s textually difficult to distinguish “I like you” from “I love you”; the distinction has to come from the context… Not true. A mí me gusta Ana. (she’s my friend, literally “Ann pleases me”, the verb is related to English “gustatory”. Note that Ana is the subject here. No, she is not “pleasing” you that way!) A mí me encanta Ana. (Literally, “Ann enchants me”, much stronger \<3). Yo amo a Ana. (Literally, “I love Ann.” The verb is related to _amour_) > [@Senegoid](#): > > …Another detail about Hebrew (which I think is true in some other languages too): The verbs “make” and “do” are the same word. So, for example, “to make \” is the same as “to do \”. I suppose the distinction is whether the \ is a noun or a verb… This is true in Spanish as well. Necesitamos hacer el trabajo. (“We need to do the work.”) Necesitamos hacer un pastel. (“We need to make a cake.”) > [@Senegoid](#): > > …Spanish also has three demonstrative pronouns where English only has two (but sorry, I don’t actually know enough Spanish to write the words here. Spanish speaker to the rescue?) We say “this thing” to point to an object near the speaker, or “that thing” to point to an object that is not near the speaker. In Spanish, there is a third demonstrative pronoun, that points to an object away from the speaker but near the person being spoken to. It’s true that “that” can mean both near the person spoken to or far away from both speaker and person spoken to, but if you need the context, you can use “yonder” to mean far away from both speaker and spoken to. This thing is red. That thing is blue. Yonder thing is green. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/22 "2014-03-12T16:12:41Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > In my experience it was often hard to find a spanish word that worked as a translation for ‘funny’. Conversely, some of the Spanish words which get translated as “funny” don’t quite mean the same and I got pitted once for a problem with that kind of translation. _Morriña_ is a Galego/Spanish word referring to a specific kind of homesickness. As a friend once put it, “_nostalgia_ is when you miss something which was never really there, like when the old folks talk about ‘olden times’ forgetting that they didn’t have arthritis but also didn’t have running water; _morriña_ is when you miss the smells of home, your mother’s cooking, the color of the soil.” The celts do _morriña_ well; it is present in English in many musical traditions with heavy celtic influence. There’s a whole collection of words English got from Spanish but which don’t quite mean the same in both languages; sometimes the English meaning gets extra words in Spanish, sometimes it exists in Spanish but it’s not the most common one; sometimes it’s the most common one in a dialect of Spanish but not in the one into which or from which you are translating. Fiesta, siesta, arroyo, playa, mesa… I’m currently reading a book which treats bolas as a singular name, in Spanish it’s plural. Translating some of those can be a royal pain in the ass, since you get people who know the word exists in both languages expecting that you will leave it the same, but sometimes the difference in meaning would mean that doing so distorts said meaning. Spanish doesn’t have a word for elope that I know. Explaining the concept is actually quite difficult… I mean, it’s not as if the people eloping are not getting married, they’re getting married without a big wedding. So? They’re still having a wedding, and it’s not quite the same as a secret wedding… and it’s not a shotgun wedding either… it’s just confusing. Then again, the concept of “we wanna have sex but it’s a sin if we’re not married so we need to get married yesterday” isn’t exactly easy to explain either, most Hispanics will just fuck - worst case scenario, the bride has a “four month hepatitis but it’s not contagious”. OTOH, the concept of _la legítima_ is complicated to explain in English. _La legítima_ is the legally-recognized wife, but the use of the word implies that the other women/wives (in Spanish it’s the same word) aren’t exactly unrecognized… just not as recognized; they’re not recognized by law, but they are recognized socially. María Leszczynska was Louis XV’s _legítima_ - how many people recognize the name? And how many, that of Madame de Pompadour? ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/23 "2014-03-12T16:15:08Z")
> [@Puzzler](#): > > Hebrew, however, doesn’t have a word for “tact”. If the Israeli people I’ve met are typical, they don’t have much need of it. ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/24 "2014-03-12T16:20:16Z")
My wife mentioned that she was having a problem finding a Spanish word for “too” in the sense of “excessively” – e.g., “That coffee is still too hot to drink.” Is there, in fact, such a word in Spanish? ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/25 "2014-03-12T16:23:53Z")
Demasiado. Este cafe hace demasiado calor para beberlo. which should be "this coffee is too hot to drink. But my spanish is rustier than a gate in monsoon season. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/26 "2014-03-12T16:25:04Z")
> [@Puzzler](#): > > In the other direction, Hebrew has a special blessing for someone wearing something new for the first time (TIT’HADESH - literally “become new”), which I think English does not. The Spanish for that one is _estrenar_. The first show of a play or movie is its _estreno_ as well. > [@JKellyMap](#): > > Going the other way, English “to look forward to something” is a toughie in Spanish. Kind of have to work around it, like with the Spanish words which mean “to think about something that is anticipated to take place in the future while experiencing a pleasant sensation associated with that thought.” Whew! _Esperar con (muchas) ganas_ isn’t anywhere near as long as your backtranslation, you know (“to await with (great) expectation”). > [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > Este cafe hace demasiado calor para beberlo. _Este café está demasiado caliente para beberlo_. _Hacer calor_ refers to the weather; _estar caliente_, to objects (do not use for people, as then it can mean to be in heat). Related words: _más_, more. _De más_, excessively, in excess: _me dio 3 pesetas de más_, he gave me 3 pesetas more than he should have. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/27 "2014-03-12T16:28:33Z")
I understand that some languages have different words for “an inside corner” and “an outside corner”. That seems sensible. I have also been bothered by that thread about a word that means “for a man to die in battle” but also “for a woman to die in childbirth”. There really oughta be a language with a word like that. I mean, plenty of literature has sentiments of that sort. Why isn’t there a verb? ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/28 "2014-03-12T16:37:06Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > T > _Este café está demasiado caliente para beberlo_. > > _Hacer calor_ refers to the weather; _estar caliente_, to objects (do not use for people, as then it can mean to be in heat). > > Related words: _más_, more. _De más_, excessively, in excess: _me dio 3 pesetas de más_, he gave me 3 pesetas more than he should have. Gracias. You would think with all the tripping I’ve done over these verbs in school, they’d have sunk in but clearly they have not. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/29 "2014-03-12T16:52:08Z")
There is a Japanese word, 余裕 _yoyuu_, which means “spare” as in room, time or money to spare. If you don’t have extra money or time, the word can be used to decline an invitation. That usage is OK, but it’s also used for spare “emotional energy” for want of a better description. It’s great for explaining why you can’t take on any further commitments or why you are feeling uptight. Both Japanese and Mandarin don’t have words for “in-law.” You have to say “your (wife’s) parents”. Japanese also doesn’t have a word for step-father, although they do for step-mother. ---
**Author:** ![tapu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@tapu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tapu)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/30 "2014-03-12T16:53:33Z")
Languages are more and less mappable lexically. But propositionally they are equivalent, meaning that you can say anything in one language that you can in another–just not with the one-to-one correspondence of what we define as “words.” Interestingly, languages are overall equal in propositional length (in time). It generally takes the same amount of time to express something in one language as in any other. (Again overall.) Even Sign Languages, with completely different and far grosser articulators, expresses any proposition in roughly the same amount of time as spoken languages. ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/31 "2014-03-12T17:08:16Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > Spanish doesn’t have a word for elope that I know. Explaining the concept is actually quite difficult… I mean, it’s not as if the people eloping are not getting married, they’re getting married without a big wedding. So? They’re still having a wedding, and it’s not quite the same as a secret wedding… and it’s not a shotgun wedding either… it’s just confusing. Then again, the concept of “we wanna have sex but it’s a sin if we’re not married so we need to get married yesterday” isn’t exactly easy to explain either, most Hispanics will just fuck - worst case scenario, the bride has a “four month hepatitis but it’s not contagious”. Up until a generation or so ago, I think “eloping” carried a strong connotation of “running off to get married because the parents would not approve”. The idea is that they can’t do anything about it once the deed is done, and so will be forced to accept the new family member with good grace. I don’t think it has anything to do with sex, unless you think all marriage is primarily about sex. Surely there are couples with disapproving parents in Spain? Whether or not their is a word for it, I would think the need to run off, get married, and hope the first grandchild soothes the problem is pretty universal. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/32 "2014-03-12T17:19:14Z")
Yes, but they either get married or move in. I’ve known cases who provoked a shotgun wedding back in the 60s or 70s (we call it a “penalty wedding” both because it’s “a punishment for getting pregnant outside of wedlock” and because the “main goal of marriage” is almost sure to be obtained, same as in a soccer penalty kick); they wanted to get married already after several years’ courtship, and would have had to wait 2-3 years more to be able to do so without her parents’ consent. But there simply isn’t a legal equivalent to doing a Romeo and Juliette - bans are required for an RCC wedding, and for a civil one, nowadays if the parents don’t agree it’s the parents’ problem, so long as both spouses are of legal age. Note that we also do not have marriage licenses, nor a setup where you can run to the next province over to get a wedding under lesser legal requirements than where you live. My great-great-grandmother got married against her parents wishes and they disinherited her, but she still got married with all proper paperwork and in the presence of any relatives and friends who weren’t being assholes about the issue. One of my cousins invited his parents and brothers out to dinner and then took them to City Hall, where his gf had also brought her parents and sister: later they sent postcards to the family informing us of the marriage; we called it “the unannounced wedding”, but both sets of parents were present; given his usual style, it was a lot more in character than a shinding with 400 people like his next brother had. Anyway, another one: the preposition _de_. Prepositions are a bitch in general, mind you. It’s not that its meanings don’t exist in other languages, but that little bugger has a ton of meanings and people tend to translate it as a possessive exclusively. I think it may be the word with more meanings in the Spanish dictionary, and it’s also one of the shortest ones! Copying the [DRAE](http://lema.rae.es/drae/?val=de) entry and adding translations: 1. prep. Denota posesión o pertenencia. La casa de mi padre. La paciencia de Job. _Belonging to, ownership. My father’s house, Job’s patience_. 2. prep. U. para crear diversas locuciones adverbiales de modo. Almorzó de pie. Le dieron de puñaladas. Se viste de prestado. Lo conozco de vista. _Part of several modal phrases: he had lunch standing up (on his feet), they knifed him (they gave him knifewounds), he wears borrowed clothes (dresses by borrowing), I know him by sight only._ 3. prep. Denota de dónde es, viene o sale alguien o algo. La piedra es de Colmenar. Vengo de Aranjuez. No sale de casa. _Indicating where something comes or exits from: stone from Colmenar, I hail from Aranjuez, he doesn’t leave the house._ 4. prep. Denota la materia de que está hecho algo. El vaso de plata. El vestido de seda. _Indicating the material from which something is made. The silver glass (glass of silver); the silk dress._ 5. prep. U. para señalar lo contenido en algo. Un vaso de agua. Un plato de asado. _Indicates something’s content. A glass of water. A plate of stew._ 6. prep. Denota asunto o materia. Este libro trata de la última guerra. Una clase de matemáticas. Hablaban de la boda. _Indicating the subject. This book is about the last war. A mathematics lesson. They were talking about the wedding._ 7. prep. Denota la causa u origen de algo. Murió de viruelas. Fiebre del heno. _Indicating the cause or origin: he died from smallpox, hayfever._ 8. prep. U. para expresar la naturaleza, condición o cualidad de alguien o algo. Hombre de valor. Entrañas de fiera. _Describing the nature, condition or qualities. A man of great daring. The guts_ of a fierce beast.\* \* In the sense of, well, metaphorical cojones if you’ll pardon the pun. 9. prep. U. para determinar o fijar con mayor viveza la aplicación de un nombre apelativo. El mes de noviembre. La ciudad de Sevilla. _To reinforce the usage of a noun as an adjective: the month of november, the city of Seville._ 10. prep. desde (‖ con idea de punto en el espacio o en el tiempo). De Madrid a Toledo. Abierto de nueve a una. _From (indicating a point in space or time). From Madrid to Toledo. Open from nine to one._ 11. prep. U. precedida de sustantivo, adjetivo o adverbio, y seguida de infinitivo. Es hora de caminar. Harto de trabajar. Lejos de pensar. _Used after a noun, adjective or adverb and followed by an infinitive. It’s time to walk. Sick of working. Far from thinking._ 12. prep. U. seguida de infinitivo con valor condicional. De saberlo antes, habría venido. _Followed by an infinitive indicating a condition. If I’d known it beforehand, I would have come._ 13. prep. U. precedida de un verbo para formar perífrasis verbales. Dejó de estudiar. Acaba de llegar. _Used after a verb to form phrasal verbs. He stopped studying. He’s just arrived._ 14. prep. U. con ciertos nombres para determinar el tiempo en que sucede algo. De madrugada. De mañana. De noche. De viejo. De niño. _Used with some nouns to describe the time when something happens. In the wee hours. In the morning. By night. As an old man. As a child._ 15. prep. U. para reforzar un calificativo. El bueno de Pedro. El pícaro del mozo. La taimada de la patrona. _Used to reinforce an adjective. Good old Pedro. That rogue boy. That cunning landlady._ 16. prep. U. como nota de ilación. De esto se sigue. De aquello se infiere. _Part of a conjunction. From this, it follows. From that, we deduce._ 17. prep. U. con valor partitivo. Dame un poco de agua. _Used to indicate a part. Give me a bit of water._ 18. prep. Denota la rápida ejecución de algo. De UN trago se bebió la tisana. De UN salto se puso en la calle. Acabemos de UNA vez. _Indicating quick execution. He drank the herbal tea in one gulp. He got to the street in one jump. Let’s finish already._ 19. prep. U. entre distintas partes de la oración con expresiones de lástima, queja o amenaza. ¡Pobre de mi hermano! ¡Ay de los vencidos! _Used in different parts of a sentence with a meaning of pity, complaint or threat. My poor brother! Woe to the conquered ones!_ 20. prep. U. para la creación de locuciones prepositivas a partir de adverbios, nombres, etc. Antes de. Respecto de. Alrededor de. A diferencia de. _Used to create prepositional phases in combination with adverbs, nouns, etc. Before. With respect to. Around. Unlike._ 21. prep. U. también combinada con otras preposiciones. De a tres. De a bordo. De por sí. Por de pronto. Tras de sí. _Used in combination with other prepositions. Three abreast. Onboard. By its very nature. For starters. Behind himself._ 22. prep. U. en ciertas construcciones con el agente de la pasiva. Acompañado de sus amigos. Dejado de la mano de Dios. Está abrumado de deudas. _Used in some constructions with the passive voice’s agent. In the company of his friends. Abandoned by God’s hand/looking like Death warmed over. Indebted up to his neck._ 23. prep. U. para introducir el término de la comparación. He comido más de lo debido. Es peor de lo que pensaba. Ahora escribe más de veinte artículos al año. _Used to introduce the term of reference in a comparison. I’ve eaten more than I should have. It’s worse than I thought. He now writes over 20 articles per year. (I think the Academics slipped on this last one :dubious:)_ 24. prep. con (‖ con idea de medio, modo o instrumento para hacer algo). Lo hizo de intento. _With (a means, method or instrument to do something). He did it on purpose._ 25. prep. para. Gorro de dormir. Ropa de deporte. _For. Sleeping cap. Sports clothing._ 26. prep. por. Lo hice de miedo. _Because of. I did it out of fear._ (Note that the same sentence can be a colloquial expression meaning “I did it perfectly.”) 27. prep. ant. a2. _Archaic, to (the linked article has 23 meanings)._ ~ ti a mí, ~ usted a mí, etc. _from you to me, etc._ 28. locs. advs. coloqs. Entre los dos, o para entre los dos. _between both or to be placed between both_ ---
**Author:** ![tapu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@tapu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tapu)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/33 "2014-03-12T17:50:58Z")
Did you find that somewhere as a reference or did you have it all in your head? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/34 "2014-03-12T18:07:00Z")
At the top, she has a link to the relevant page from the online version of the Real Academia Espanola’s dictionary. ---
**Author:** ![tapu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@tapu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tapu)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/35 "2014-03-12T19:59:47Z")
Such a stickler. I was just joshing her–she often seems just that knowledgeable. ---
**Author:** ![Coriolanus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coriolanus/32/18769_2.png) [@Coriolanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coriolanus)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/36 "2014-03-12T20:35:32Z")
Russian doesn’t have a word for “grandparents” - one would instead say “grandmother and grandfather” (бабушки и дедушки) And with the word from the OP, “enjoy”, there’s no straightforward translation for “He enjoys good health”. He has good health would be used instead. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/37 "2014-03-12T20:59:07Z")
> [@Arrogance\_Ex\_Machina](#): > > This is true in Finnish as well, though it’s easy for me to wrap my brain around the idea of having two different words. What I can’t comprehend even after 20+ years of using English is why there must be two different words for “borrow” and “loan” when we get by with just one that means both. I keep on mixing them. I’m curious how that works. Do Finns use prepositions to indicate which direction the money is being transferred? How does it work as a noun? Do you just figure out who owes who from the context? ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/38 "2014-03-12T21:12:21Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I’m curious how that works. Do Finns use prepositions to indicate which direction the money is being transferred? How does it work as a noun? Do you just figure out who owes who from the context? It’s the same in Russian. Let’s say the word that means both is “loan”. You say “I loaned from him” when you borrow or “I loaned to him” when you loan. As a noun, you either “take a loan” or you “give a loan” - just like in English. There really is no need for two verbs. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/39 "2014-03-12T21:15:33Z")
Here’s one within the English language. There’s no term in American English for the British (and Australian) word “biscuit”, and there’s no term in British English for the American word “biscuit”. For British “biscuits” an American might say “cookies and crackers”, while a British person would have to resort to something like “what the Americans call biscuits, which are a bit like scones, but get eaten with the main meal”, since the American concept pf a biscuit is unknown in Britain. Some other surprising examples: Italian has no term for the English word “nut”. German has no single term for the English word “student” – in German, “ein Schüler” goes to school and “ein Student” goes to college or university. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2014, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473/40 "2014-03-12T21:20:00Z")
> [@Coriolanus](#): > > Russian doesn’t have a word for “grandparents” - one would instead say “grandmother and grandfather” (бабушки и дедушки) Familial relations words differ greatly from language to language. Some languages have a word for every relation. Some use phrases to indicate relationship. Russian doesn’t have one word for “cousin” (well, there is one from French, but it is considered a bit pretentious and wouldn’t be used in everyday speech). But does have one for “nephew”. Go figure. > [@](#): > > And with the word from the OP, “enjoy”, there’s no straightforward translation for “He enjoys good health”. He has good health would be used instead. “He enjoys good health” is really an idiomatic use of “enjoy”, so no surprise it wouldn’t be translated that way. There is a word in Russian that covers some aspects of “enjoy” (“наслаждаться”) but it is a lot stronger than the English word. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/those-little-lexical-gaps/683473.md?page=3)