Быть что?

[zombie-laika.livejournal.com]

Every Thursday night my Russian class meets at a cafe for conversation. I corrected my teacher's error in class, so he said he would buy me a drink. At the cafe, he kept saying, "Антон, будешь чаю?" or "Будешь квас?". What's the deal with this construction? Does it actually mean "are you going to have some tea (kvas)?"

Comments

[insaint.livejournal.com]

Pretty much. A more accurate way to translate it would be "do you want tea?"

[mithgol.livejournal.com]

Most likely “...some tea?” here, to reflect the difference between „чаю“ and „чай“.

[temcat.livejournal.com]

Well, in this case "будешь чаю?" and "будешь чай?" are practically equivalent.

[silvara-v.livejournal.com]

Nobody will say будешь чаю
normally we say будешь чай?
the question is "What would you like?" "I would like (some) tea"

[temcat.livejournal.com]

Never say never, nobody, etc :-) Будешь чаю (even чайку) is fairly common where I live.

[silvara-v.livejournal.com]

sorry if i was too categorical, but it is not o normal or correct way to speak I am afraid :)

[oryx_and_crake]

I agree with silvara_v: Хочешь чаю? is perfectly OK, Будешь чаю? sounds quite wrong. Будешь чай/квас/суп? is, to my mind, the only correct version.

[gera.livejournal.com]

That's exactly what it means.

In questions будешь пить..., будешь есть... the verbs пить and есть are usually omitted when the suggested food or drink is mentioned.

[zombie-laika.livejournal.com]

Ahh, ok. Cool, thanks.

[a-garvey.livejournal.com]

Not exactly. It is short form of "Будешь ли ты пить чай?". I'd say it sounds like "Would you mind having a cup of tee?"

[miram.livejournal.com]

Let me add that this form is most common and normal, but exclusively colloquial.

[mricon.livejournal.com]

Yes, in fact, if someone just asks you "буш?" they are usually inviting you to split a bottle of vodka with them. :)

[temcat.livejournal.com]

... or they are so drunk that they mistake you for Dubya :-D

[ja-va.livejournal.com]

good one.

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

квас is very, very *not* tea.

Think marmite dissolved in fizzy water with a little sugar added. Weirdly, I do actually quite like it, but most westerners don't!

[zombie-laika.livejournal.com]

Yes, I know, I've had it. It was merely another example.

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

Sorry, after I posted that comment I realised that your post could be interpreted in one of two ways. No offence intended, I assure you.

Actually, the really *bad* thing that Russians do with квас is make soup out of it. I've had that in Moscow, and I have to say that it really is truly revolting!

[oryx_and_crake]

Well, I find some things the Westerners eat revolting, too, but I normally just keep my opinion to myself. If people eat it, it means they like it, and who am I to preach my eating habits into them, anyway.

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

It was actually a bunch of Russians who fed me it in the first place, in a weird cow-themed cafe in central Moscow. They did it as a joke, wondering if I'd actually eat it. None of them would have gone near the stuff.

Actually, I do like most Russian food, and there's plenty of Western food I won't eat. I understand very well that sense of humour doesn't always translate well, I should know, having a Russian national as a partner as I do. So please understand that I mean no offence to you or anyone else, so chill out a little won't you?

[tushan.livejournal.com]

Don't know what kind of окрошка did you have at "themed" restaurant, but normal home-made окрошка is just a meat salad dressed with lots of chilled kvas (or kefir, for that matter). If someone'd have boiled it, I would never come near it, too! =)

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

It was pretty weird, I can tell you! It was served in a bowl, much like the ворщ I also tried (which was really nice, although my Russian other half wont touch it due to hating beetroot with a passion!). There were a few bits of meat and vegetables floating in a bowl mostly full of still quite fizzy квас. I think there was some сметана floating on top, but even that wasn't enough to save it! Euurgh. It was a combination that really didn't work for me.

The way you describe it actually sounds like it would be quite nice, however!

[tushan.livejournal.com]

борщ.

Му-Му is kinda Ponderosa, I think. Real cheap (compared to restaurants) and serving "normal", regular food

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

Oh, the restaurant was called Му му, not far from Red Square. Everything was painted in a silly black and white cow pattern, but other than for the dish I mentioned, I liked everything else. Mmmm... cabbage pie!

[padruka1988.livejournal.com]

I from the United States and I heart kvas. Just thought I'd share. :))

[oryx_and_crake]

Sorry - you do WHAT to kvas?

[juniper949.livejournal.com]

Saying "I heart something" is another way of saying "I love something." Picture that someone has scrawled on a tree "I [picture of a heart] Billy." I think, but I'm not sure, that it really became popular to say after a recent movie titled "I heart Huckabees", where instead of the word "heart" there was a picture of a heart.

[oryx_and_crake]

Oh, I see. Thanks for clarification.

[tushan.livejournal.com]

thanks a bunch!
I suspected it ever since "We Hearth Darth" =))))

[spazzling21.livejournal.com]

Hey, Tony! This is Kendra from Russian Night. I was wondering if you still had your 102 book and if you possibly would want to sell it... Let me know! Thanks! kawilli@umich.edu