Use of вроде in questions

Question

I don't understand what вроде adds to this question. Can someone translate or paraphrase it for me?

ты вроде говорил, что встречал её?

вроде should be separated by commas from left and right — Anixx, Jun 14 '14 at 08:32

score 6 · Accepted Answer · answered Jun 11 '14 at 20:15

6

This adds meaning of "not completely sure" to the declarative sentence.
In the other words: I'm almost sure, but not completely sure.

So the translation is

I thought, you told me that you met her. Am I right?

In opposite, without вроде, this phrase becomes the following question:

Have you ever told me, that you met her?

answered Jun 11 '14 at 20:15

Dmitry

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Thank you! I've also seen вроде бы used like this - are they interchangeable? If not, what is the difference, if any? – CocoPop Jun 14 '14 at 13:43
I believe that they are equal in such sentences. – Dmitry Jun 14 '14 at 20:02

score 4 · Answer 2 · edited Jun 18 '20 at 08:26

@Dmitry is correct for the asked question ( I can't add a comment due to lack of rep ), just wanted to expand on the use of the word 'вроде' ( adding uncertainty/fuzziness ) here's another use:

Она́ писа́ла что́-то вро́де мемуáров.

She was writing something like (or something that resembled) memorandums.

and

Ты же вро́де как сдал на права́.

Haven't you passed your driving test?

source

Metaphor · Answer 3 · 2014-06-12T23:51:11.273

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It means "similar to", "like" or "apparently". Much akin to the English word "like" in the teenage contingent of the California Valley, it can be a parasite in speech.

ты вроде говорил, что встречал её?

Means:

Didn't you say that you had met her?

or:

I believe you had said you had met her, no?

edited Jun 12 '14 at 23:51

answered Jun 12 '14 at 13:19

Metaphor

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I know the basic meaning of вроде, again, my question was strictly about it's meaning in this and similar statements. – CocoPop Jun 12 '14 at 13:24

score 2 · Answer 4 · edited Jun 18 '20 at 08:26

2

вроде in this case is expressing uncertainty:

ты вроде говорил, что встречал её?

You seem to have said that you have met her.

or

Haven't you said that you have met her?

If you omit вроде, then it is simply a question: "Have you said that you have met her?" With вроде the sentence is expressing doubt: "I thought you said that you've met her, but I am not sure".

edited Jun 18 '20 at 08:26

Community

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answered Jun 12 '14 at 19:50

Dima

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Thank you! Is словно the colloquial equivalent of this word? Can it be used the same way? – CocoPop Jun 12 '14 at 20:30
Not really... словно is expressing a comparison, without the connotation of doubt. If you use словно, you just get a simile. Also, in this particular usage "вроде" is the colloquial term. A more literary expression would be "кажется" (literally "it seems"). – Dima Jun 12 '14 at 20:37

Use of вроде in questions

4 Answers4