Looking for a Soviet-era Russian word
December 30, 2016 1:40 PM Subscribe
When I learned Russian many years ago, I was taught a Soviet-era word that meant something like "failure to over-fulfil your production quota" (in the context of the Stakhanovites/shock workers). It's very apposite to a situation I'm in, and I can now neither remember it, nor assemble a google search to find it. Can anyone help a tovarishch out?
Best answer: I haven't heard this word before but it does literally means that and the the first few hits on Google in Russian confirm it as a notable Soviet-era word. The transliteration would be "nedoperevypolneniya".
posted by griphus at 3:28 PM on December 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by griphus at 3:28 PM on December 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
Best answer: Though I don't know the answer myself, I figured недоперевыполнение had to be it b/c it's so comical & absurd in Russian -- it translates to something like "underoverfulfillment".
I confirmed w/ my family (we're all Soviet-born but I'm too young to know stuff like this) -- the word really was meant as a joke though, & was never an official term as far as they know.
posted by geneva uswazi at 5:57 PM on December 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
I confirmed w/ my family (we're all Soviet-born but I'm too young to know stuff like this) -- the word really was meant as a joke though, & was never an official term as far as they know.
posted by geneva uswazi at 5:57 PM on December 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Thank you!
The word wasn't taught as an official term, but as an example of Soviet-era humour, which totally chimes with what you're saying.
posted by Vortisaur at 2:44 AM on December 31, 2016
The word wasn't taught as an official term, but as an example of Soviet-era humour, which totally chimes with what you're saying.
posted by Vortisaur at 2:44 AM on December 31, 2016
Was your textbook by any chance A Russian Course by Alexander Lipson (which I posted about here)?
posted by languagehat at 11:54 AM on December 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by languagehat at 11:54 AM on December 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
Alexander Lipson's book on Metafilter, previously.
How does Joe in Australia know this? He tried to make a new post about it. Was Joe in Australia happy to find the old post? Yes, very happy. [without great enthusiasm]
posted by Joe in Australia at 8:02 PM on December 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
How does Joe in Australia know this? He tried to make a new post about it. Was Joe in Australia happy to find the old post? Yes, very happy. [without great enthusiasm]
posted by Joe in Australia at 8:02 PM on December 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Languagehat - no, although reading about it makes me wish it had been!
(My textbook was an older version of this one)
posted by Vortisaur at 12:23 PM on January 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
(My textbook was an older version of this one)
posted by Vortisaur at 12:23 PM on January 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by ringu0 at 3:05 PM on December 30, 2016 [6 favorites]