100 common words in Russian

ome Russian words are known everywhere. You do not need to translate them. Either because the word is simply unrenderable, or because the translation is redundant — this phenomenon is well known.

• Матрешка / Matryoshka. Though matryoshka itself is not a Russian invention but a Japanese one, it is the Russian matryoshka that has become a world famous brand, and the word itself does not need a translation.
• Водка / Vodka. Everyone in the world can understand this word. Its origin is still controversial. According to one version, it comes from the Polish wodka, which goes back to the common Slavic word woda.
• Борщ / Borsch. Russian cuisine is known and loved all over the world, and its specialties such as блины (bliny), пироги (pirogi), пельмени (pelmeni), каша (kasha), квас (kvas) and сметана (smetana) can be found on the menus of many foreign restaurants.
• Бабушка / Babushka. If you look into the English-Russian dictionary, you can see the word babushka (meaning: a usually triangularly folded kerchief for the head). The second meaning of this word is “an elderly Russian woman.”
• Самовар / Samovar. This is a Russian thing in itself. Though the first samovars appeared in China, they became an object of national pride in Russia.