How do I ask "Really?" in Russian?

Question

I already speak a fair bit of Russian.

In a classroom where I often study, I once wrote «покой» on the blackboard. When I came back on another day, someone had completed what I had written on the board with «нам только снится» :) ^^ And I wanted to write «really?», but in Russian, obviously. But I don’t know what word I should choose exactly in this context!

I can't seem to understand what word I should use to translate «really?» (as a reaction to something someone just said): правда? действительно? or even another word? I remember a friend of mine using «вообще» in this case, but when I try to translate it, I get quite a different meaning from what I'm looking for. What would a native say? (Please warn me if you suggest slang words! ;) :) )

Hi and welcome to Russian.SE! Words, especially abstract ones, are best translated within context. Could you please provide an English phrase using "really", or, better yet, a Russian phrase with a gap to fill with an equivalent of English "really"? This way, we could leave the guesswork out and provide a much better answer. Thanks! — Quassnoi, Oct 31 '21 at 16:22
By « покой», I wanted to mean « peace ». I wrote it on an late evening and I was very tired, all was very silent, so I wrote « покой» ) — AAS98, Nov 01 '21 at 00:35
With "really" did you mean something more like "could you come up with something more entertaining" thus translation could be along the lines "Скучно!" ( similar to one writing "fish" after "If you give a man a ") or you actually did not know the phrase and wanted to express more of a disagreement/surprise (which is what answers so far suggest)? — Alexei Levenkov, Nov 02 '21 at 02:01
The phrase word "Really?" has different meanings:

Expression of surprise. 2. Neutral word, just showing, that you are paying attention to what is being said. 3. (Mentioned by A.L.) expression of disinterest. Which do you need? — Gangnus, Nov 02 '21 at 16:20

score 26 · Answer 1 · edited Dec 04 '21 at 14:32

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There are many phrases that can be used in a situation like this. Some of them include:

Правда? or Чё, правда? (Mostly used if you indeed question the truthfulness of what you've heard; the latter is more slangy.)
Разве? (If you suspect that what you've heard isn't true.)
Неужели? (A bit stronger that "Разве", in certain contexts can be considered a bit rude.)
Да ты что! or Да ну?! (To indicate surprise.)
Не может быть! (Also to indicate surprise, but with a bit of skepticism thrown in.)
Серьёзно? (Also expresses both surprise and skepticism, rather informal.)

edited Dec 04 '21 at 14:32

CocoPop

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answered Oct 31 '21 at 15:44

Petr

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Thank you very much!! As requested I will explain why I need this for. In a classroom where I often study, I once wrote « покой» on the blackboard. When I came back on another day, someone had completed what I had written on the board with « нам только снится» :) ^^ And I wanted to write « ([really]?) », but in russian obviously. But I don’t know which word I should chose exactly in this context! From the answer which was kindly posted, I would pick « разве?» up – AAS98 Oct 31 '21 at 16:39
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@AAS98 What did you mean to say by writing «покой»? 'Silence'? If so, it's «ТИХО!» or, more formally, «Сохраняйте тишину». «Покой» means 'rest'. – Sergey Slepov Oct 31 '21 at 19:16
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"Действительно?" + "Реально?"

Artem S. Tashkinov

Oct 31 '21 at 23:55

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Серьёзно is actually a loanword from French and works just like it does in English or French (sérieuxment?! or seriously?!) – J... Nov 01 '21 at 15:47

"Вы подумайте!", "Ты подумай!" – Gangnus Nov 02 '21 at 16:20

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Да ну is more like "come on!" – USERNAME GOES HERE Nov 17 '21 at 13:06

score 8 · Answer 2 · answered Nov 01 '21 at 02:51

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What would a native say?

"И пусть ничто не потревожит сны."

Explanation: "Покой нам только снится" is 2nd sentence of Brodsky's poem "И вечный бой…" Proposed answer is 3rd sentence of the same poem.

answered Nov 01 '21 at 02:51

awn

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Your answer could be improved with additional supporting information. Please [edit] to add further details, such as citations or documentation, so that others can confirm that your answer is correct. You can find more information on how to write good answers in the help center. – Community Nov 01 '21 at 03:41
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Actually, Brodsky borrowed the phrase from Blok: "И вечный бой! Покой нам только снится Сквозь кровь и пыль… Летит, летит степная кобылица И мнет ковыль… " https://www.culture.ru/poems/275/na-pole-kulikovom But anyway, while "Покой нам только снится" is a well-known idiom, few people know where it's from and whether it's a part of any poem at all – Ivan Milyakov Nov 01 '21 at 12:12
How's it related to the question? – USERNAME GOES HERE Nov 11 '21 at 14:23
More information would be great - at least a tranalstion of the Russian portions for those who can't make it out. – CocoPop Dec 04 '21 at 14:16
Combining with Sergey Slepov's advice to replace "Покой" with "Сохраняйте тишину!", that would be quite funny. Покой... нам только снится... И пусть ничто не потревожит сны. Сохраняйте тишину! – il--ya Dec 15 '21 at 12:13

score 2 · Answer 3 · edited Nov 10 '21 at 21:20

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It might be a word 'В натуре?'.

edited Nov 10 '21 at 21:20

Vitaly

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answered Nov 01 '21 at 07:38

NXPSD

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It would help to clarify what you mean by "really?". Literally it means, "in truth? In reality?" but it's come to have a subtle sarcastic implication meaning more like, "You're joking right?", or more accurately, "You can't be serious". It's actually hard to pin down the meaning, which gives it it's magic. – Walt Howard Nov 01 '21 at 18:59

score 1 · Answer 4 · answered Nov 09 '21 at 13:29

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You can say "Реально?" if you want to sound informal.

answered Nov 09 '21 at 13:29

USERNAME GOES HERE

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score 1 · Answer 5 · answered Nov 09 '21 at 17:55

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A neat variant I don't see in other answers is "Да ладно?", it indicates surprize (sometimes sarcastically) just like "Да ну?" but seems more frequent among Millenials

answered Nov 09 '21 at 17:55

ain92

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score 1 · Answer 6 · edited Dec 04 '21 at 14:22

"Правда?" — a skeptical question, means you're not sure if the statement/fact is true.

"Действительно?" — less skeptical. Can be (sometimes) used in more formal speech.

"Вы уверены?" — kind of a formal phrase. Can be used when you're asking someone formally, or asking a group of people. It's more suitable for when you're told something weird, you're not at all sure, and you're asking someone if they're sure of what they're saying.

"Точно?" — easier to pronounce, a bit shorter, very similar to the first two.

"Серьёзно?" — informal, use only when talking to a friend. Usually pronounced with a heavy stress on the letter ё. Better suited for when you're really surprised by a fact/statement.

Those are the main ones. Hope they help. Of course, the Russian language is very rich in words, but you don't need to know them all. =)

score 1 · Answer 7 · answered Dec 04 '21 at 14:26

В натуре?

WARNING: Very slang and rough. Your Russian friends'll crack up that you even know this expression It's basically prison talk, and they'll invariably tell you not to use it. However, it's good to know in case you come across it in a movie or chatroom, for example.

score 0 · Answer 8 · edited Dec 04 '21 at 14:29

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You can use "Точно?" or "Действительно?"

And if your classmates are in IT, you can definitely use "O'Rly" despite the fact it isn't Cyrillic. It belongs to nerd culture: https://lurkmore.to/O_RLY%3F

edited Dec 04 '21 at 14:29

CocoPop

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answered Nov 01 '21 at 09:26

Yury Schkatula

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O'Rly is NOT Russian, it's English, it's a part of nerdy culture 'cause "nerds" use many English slang in Russian. – USERNAME GOES HERE Nov 17 '21 at 13:07

How do I ask "Really?" in Russian?

8 Answers8