| ста | двумястами | тремястами | пятьюстами | ||||
| ста | двухстах | трёхстах | пятистах |
| Appendix F: Root List |
This list has been abridged from
Russian words are composed of the following components: prefixes, roots, suffixes, and endings. Technically, each inflected word may be broken down into a stem plus an ending. The ending is inflectional, such as the nominative singular adjectival ending -ая, the genitive plural nominal ending - ов, and the zero-ending (-Ш) in the masculine noun ранг. The stem itself may be broken down into at least one root, as well as prefix and/or suffix, or it may consist only of a root. As in Latin, these components each convey a certain meaning or significance. Thus, when translating papers, it is helpful to have a list of common roots, prefixes, and suffixes; should a given word not be listed in the dictionary, the reader is able to make an educated guess at the definition by examining its components. For example, the word переговоры (from the verb переговорить) may be divided into the prefix пере-, the root говор-, and the inflectional ending -ы (the stem is переговор). The prefix пере- means 'across,' the root говор- means 'talk,' and the ending -ы indicates nominative plural. Thus, the word means 'negotiations.' Similarly, the verb переносить consists of the prefix пере-, the root нос-, the suffix -и-, and the ending -ть. The prefix пере- means 'across', the root нос- is actually нес-, which means 'carry,' the suffix -и- is verbal, and the ending -ть indicates the infinitive. Thus, the verb means 'to transfer.'
Of course, this process of breaking words into their components is not always straightforward. Often, consonant alternations have occurred, as well as truncation of the final consonant of the root before the suffixes and/or endings are added. Most Russian roots are of the form consonant-vowel-consonant; thus, if the root appears to end in a vowel, either it is foreign or the final consonant has been truncated. Also, consonant-consonant roots occur; the fill vowels о/е usually occur between the consonants when they are used in words. For instance, the root бр- means 'take'; in the present tense of the verb брать, 'to take,' the stem is бер-, as in the first-person singular form я беру.
Many Russian words have been borrowed from Latin; therefore, it is often helpful to translate the Russian components directly to Latin, which in turn gives the English. For example, the verb подписать is broken down into под/пис/а/ть. The prefix под- means 'under, below,' the root пис- means 'write, scribe,' and the suffix -а- is verbal. Unfortunately, these clues do not give a clear definition of the word. However, by using the Latin equivalents, the reader is able to arrive at the correct definition; 'under, below' is 'sub-' in Latin, and 'scribe, write' is 'scribe' in Latin: подписать is 'to subscribe.'
The following list contains prefixes, roots, and nominal suffixes (i.e., those suffixes which form nouns) and consists only of the most common elements. Remember also that prefixes may not always indicate a specific meaning; in the imperfective/perfective verb pairs писать/написать, делать/сделать, the prefixes на- and с- indicate perfectivity, not the meanings 'onto,' 'off of.' Within each entry, separate meanings are set apart by a semicolon. While using the root list, keep in mind the following consonant alternations:
| щ from ск, ст | ш from с, к |
| ж from з, г, д | ч from к, т |
| жд from д | мл, пл, вл, бл, фл from м, п, в, б, ф |
| Common Prefixes |
БЕЗ- without
В- in, into
