(no subject)

[upthera44.livejournal.com]

I am having trouble telling the difference between these 3 combinations: 

1. отметить and  заметить

2. зачем and почему

3. жалеть and сожалеть

1. It seems to me that отметить is more like remark (to comment on something) and  заметить is to notice (to see something and make a mental note of it). For instance, someone says "I got a haircut today" and you answer "I noticed" (I would think this would be заметить). And for отметить, maybe something like "He remarked that he did not like the opera."

2. I've been told that зачем is used for all questions regarding the future and почему about the past and the present. Is this true? So "Why are you going to quit your job?" would use зачем and "Why did you quit your job" would be почему?

3. What is the difference between жалеть and сожалеть? I generally am interested in expressing the idea of regret. The dictionary says сожалеть is to regret and жалеть  is to pity, but in conversations with Russians it seems to me that they use жалеть  to express regret and I haven't heard сожалеть  used. For instance "I quit my job. I don't regret it" -- I've heard this expressed with жалеть. 

Thanks very much

Comments

[oryx_and_crake]

зачем is used for all questions regarding the future and почему about the past and the present
---
This is completely wrong. Зачем signifies purpose and почему signifies causes. Either could be used both for future and for past. E.g.

Почему ты купил этот чайник?
Мне понравился цвет. (reason)

Зачем ты купил этот чайник?
Чтобы кипятить в нем воду. (purpose)

Зачем ты завтра идешь в кино?
Чтобы посмотреть этот фильм. (purpose)

Почему ты завтра идешь в кино?
Потому что у меня каникулы. (reason)

[oryx_and_crake]

жалеть can be used as transitive: жалеть кого-то (to have pity for someone)

сожалеть can only be intransitive: сожалеть о чем-то (to have regrets about something)

[oryx_and_crake]

P.S. Yes, жалеть can be used to express regret, too.
E.g. Я ни о чем не жалею - I have no regrets.

[pigmeich.livejournal.com]

There's a lot of explanatory dictionaries -- I always used alikes, when contribute with English:

http://vidahl.agava.ru/cgi-bin/dic.cgi?p=59&t=9107
http://vidahl.agava.ru/cgi-bin/dic.cgi?p=137&t=22899

If you are good enough in Russian there will be more quikest way.

[pigmeich.livejournal.com]

So, I've got nothing to add to your first and oryx_and_crake's second and third explanations.

[oryx_and_crake]

the problem is that "why" has both meanings in English (зачем and почему), so this explanation does not really work.

[oryx_and_crake]

Once again, it is not easier because "why" in Englisah has both meanings at once. It creates confusion.

[the_motion.livejournal.com]

But the first reply was correct, wasn't it?
Зачем signifies purpose and почему signifies causes.

[oryx_and_crake]

Yes

[pzrk.livejournal.com]

1. mark vs. notice
2. purpose vs. reason
3. pity vs. regret

[kunaifusu.livejournal.com]

Same as English noun 'pity' Russian verb жалеть means both 'to pity' and 'to regret'. In informal speech people will use жалеть almost exclusively. Сожалеть just sounds too formal and in informal speech would imply a greater degree of grief, something as big as a death or a serious illness. In written language or formal speech though сожалеть is common while жалеть is rare, and сожалеть can express pity as well as regret too.

[andrey-bessonov.livejournal.com]

зачем = what for
почему = why

[oryx_and_crake]

the problem is that "why" has both meanings in English (зачем and почему), so this explanation does not really work.

[andrey-bessonov.livejournal.com]

oh yes, sorry!

[joliecanard.livejournal.com]

How do you feel about defining it as:

зачем = what for
почему = how come

[malim-praedari.livejournal.com]

> 1. It seems to me that отметить is more like remark (to comment on something)
> and заметить is to notice (to see something and make a mental note of it).
> For instance, someone says "I got a haircut today" and you answer "I noticed"
> (I would think this would be заметить). And for отметить, maybe something like
> "He remarked that he did not like the opera."

You are not quite correct. "Заме́тить" does mean "to notice". It also means "to remark in passing". Thus, "He remarked that he did not like the opera" is "он заме́тил [мне], что о́пера ему́ не понра́вилась".

"Отме́тить", so far as I can tell, almost perfectly coincides with the English lexeme "note". Examples:

1) В свое́й ре́чи он отме́тил высо́кое ка́чество услу́г фи́рмы. - In his speech, he noted the high quality of the firm's services.

2) Я не стал замеча́ть вслух, что он соверши́л оши́бку, но про себя́ э́то отме́тил. - I did not point out his mistake out loud but I made a note of it in my head.