Top 10 Russian expressions about doing nothing
There’s no shortage of ways to say ‘to do nothing’ in Russian. Below is our top 10.
#10
Сидеть сложа руки
[sidét slozhá rúki]
To sit with folded hands
No-nonsense phrase, clear imagery, gets its meaning across; neutral and appropriate in virtually any register.
#9
Сидеть как именинник
[sidét kak imenínnik]
To sit like a birthday boy/girl
Not terribly common, but the idiom does exist. We all know that dreaded moment where everyone is singing happy birthday to you and there’s nothing you can do but sit there and grin. The phrase is a little on the informal side.
#8
Лежать на боку
[lezhát na bokú]
To lie on your side
Fairly self explanatory. There is another version too, лежать на печи (to lie on the stove), referring to a clay stove, which in addition to its primary function has also been used in Russian villages as a sleeping place.
There is also a Russian folk tale called At the Pike’s Behest or Emelya the Simpleton, in which the protagonist, Emelya, is very fond of chilling on the stove and isn’t keen on doing much. Both lying on your side and lying on the stove are a little informal.
#7
Просиживать штаны
[prosízhivat shtany]
To sit your trousers out
Literally meaning to wear your trousers out by sitting down for so long, this phrase is on the informal side. It’s usually used in reference to not doing anything at work.
#6
Гонять собак
[gonyát sobák]
To chase dogs
A questionable practice for sure. There is also a version featuring pigeons (гонять голубей). Both are a bit informal.
#5
Пинать болт
[pinát bólt]
To kick bolt
This one is featured on our Instagram in the post below, complete with an example. The phrase is very informal.
#4
Считать ворон
[shchitát vorón]
To count crows
A murder of crows flying around an ominous castle isn’t something one would like to count per se, but the phrase doesn’t have any scary connotation, it’s just an informal phrase doing it’s job.
#3
Ловить мух
[lovít mukh]
To catch flies
Just like with the last example, we hope you have better uses for your time, but who are we to judge? The phrase is informal.
#2
Плевать в потолок
[plevát v potolók]
To spit into ceiling
This phrase is also on our Instagram page with an example and a picture of our loveable mascot Egor Beaver. Check it out!
#1
Сидеть пердеть
[sidét perdét]
To sit and fart
Our top pick is highly informal for obvious reasons. It speaks for itself really.