LEKSIKOS TYRINĖJIMAI

LIETUVOS TSR MOKSLŲ AKADEMIJA

LEXICON OF THE DIALECTS OF THE MŪŠA RIVER BASIN

E. GRINAVECKIENĖ

The speech of the people in every corner of our republic conceals a wealth of lively everyday expressions that have not been widely published, rarer words, and fixed word combinations. Most of them, together with the realia they express, are gradually forgotten and disappear. It is therefore important to record, publish, and study these lexical facts as diligently as possible, for a word is a good reflection of the life of the people of an entire region or of particular places within it, a witness to that life pointing to its connections with the past and the present.

The dialect lexicon of the Mūša River basin presented here was recorded by the author in 1960–1965 within the area bounded by Pašvitinys, Žeimelis, Vaškai, and Linkuva. The selected words are set apart from the literary language; that is, the words included here are dialectal forms—lexical, derivational, accentual, or semantic, and a few are also syntactic. Also included are words whose figurative meaning is narrowly dialectal in character, or which, in the author’s view, either in themselves or in some of their derivational elements, are associated with these dialects or larger units of these dialects, and are closer and more characteristic of them. The relation between the words presented and the lexicon of other Lithuanian dialects is not addressed here; that is, individual words in the forms or meanings given may also be used across a wider area of Lithuanian dialects. The largest share of the words included here consists, perhaps, of the most active and distinctive element of dialect lexicon: vivid verbs. A considerable part of the published lexicon survives only in the stories and recollections of older generations, and denotes realia that have now mostly passed out of use or are disappearing, associated with ancient customs, traditions, and the like. A certain portion of the words shares lexical, semantic, or derivational features with Latvian (Latv.). Some of the words are also borrowings, most often Slavicisms (Sl.) or Germanisms. Lexicon shared with other languages or borrowed from them can help illuminate, from one perspective or another, the relationship of the dialects of the Mūša River basin, or of Lithuanian and its dialects in general, with other languages. Many of the words and forms presented can help illuminate and explain numerous aspects of Lithuanian vocabulary, grammar, and accentuation, as well as the origins of many forms and changes in word meaning.

Words from the dialects of the Mūša River basin, like the lexicon of all other Lithuanian dialects, have long been collected and compiled in the files of the Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language and, in recent years, also the Atlas of the Lithuanian Language, and published (together with all Lithuanian words) in the major Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language¹. However, until now, we have had, one might say, no studies devoted exclusively to publishing or examining the lexicon of these dialects. The well-known Lithuanian linguist K. Jaunius did, it is true, publish “Lexical Features of the Panevėžys Dialect

¹ See Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language, I–VIII.

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Lexicon²; however, the relatively few words of the Panevėžys dialect that he describes were collected mostly in places other than those represented in the lexicon presented here (Pašvalys, Pãmpėnai, Krinčinas, Joniškėlis, Vabalninkas, and Linkuva). Moreover, the words there were selected and presented from a different perspective: without illustrative material, they are compared with one another, and their equivalents in other Lithuanian dialects and other languages are sought. Because the aims differ, the lexicon compiled by K. Jaunius also differs from the one presented here.

* * *

Each dialect word presented here is illustrated by one or more sentences—lively expressions from spoken folk language, recorded from the speech of people who speak the dialect fluently. In this way, numerous vivid expressions, idioms, and examples of folklore in its shorter forms are presented. All the words and the sentences illustrating them have been transposed into the literary language. The words are presented in alphabetical order. The headwords and all words in the illustrative sentences are marked for stress. The accentual paradigm is also indicated for nominal headwords. Definitions of word meanings and grammatical and other labels and abbreviations generally follow those used in the Dictionary of Contemporary Lithuanian,³ except that hybrid formations are marked “hybrid” in parentheses, while after a foreign word, a note in parentheses indicates, where possible, the language from or through which it entered the dialect. In some cases the latter is compared with corresponding lexical equivalents in other languages; overall, however, the aim is not to address the etymology of all the dialect words presented here.

A

advikãtas (from Latin) (2) lawyer: You speak just like a lawyer. aičvaras (3ᵃ) aitvaras: The aičvaras flies: neither head nor tail, just a little light, like a poker. The aičvaras sucks up grain from one granary, pours it into another, and that one becomes rich. That aičvaras is the one that flies about as a fire in the sky. That child is an aičvaras’s offspring—it is very mischievous.

akikplėša b (1) shameless person: I don’t want to talk to him: he’s such a cheeky fellow.

akis (4) 1. △ to put eyes in to teach: They taught them all, put eyes in them: they see everything, understand everything. akis nugręžti to be unable to take one’s eyes off: He is so handsome you can’t take your eyes off him: a yellow forelock (hair), and curly-haired. akim sužiūrėti to “eat up” with one’s eyes: We devour the meat with our eyes; none of us eats it. 2. millstone hopper opening: I filled the eye full of grain and can’t grind any more.

ãmalas (3ᵇ) △ to cast ãmalas to infect crops with rust through lightning without thunder: When there is lightning but no thunder, people in the old days say: ãmalas is being cast; the oats will be ruined.

amžinãtilsi 1. deceased person: The deceased mother has passed away. 2. finished, over: Soon it will be all over for them. It’s all over now for those buildings.

antãlekas (1) (cf. Polish antãlek) small beer cask: Farmhands buy an antãlek of beer and drink it in the woods at Pentecost. An antãlek holds thirty liters of beer.

ancak|ỹs (3ᵃ) eyebrow: What are your eyebrows like—black or dyed? -ėlis (2): That little girl had whitish eyebrows and white hair.

² V. Drotvinas ir V. Grinaveckis, Kalbininkas Kazimieras Jaunius, Vilnius, 1970, p. 154–161.

³ Žr. Dabartinės lietuvių kalbos žodynas, Vilnius, 1954, p. V–XVI.

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apirėdai pl. hybrid (from Slavic) (1) clothes, clothing: I showed all the clothes I have.

apýrupiai rather coarse, somewhat coarse: When they grind feed for the pigs, it is ground rather coarsely, into little groats.

apjó|ti, -ja, -jo to bully, oppress: He is a slower man, oppressed by her.

apjuo|k|ti, -ja, apjuokė to ridicule: Everyone will ridicule him for drinking so much. Don’t go without a headscarf; everyone will laugh at you.

ap|kamšýti, -kamšo, -kamšė 1. to reward: When will you reward me today? 2. to adorn with flowers, plant around: They bring many beautiful wreaths (flowers) and adorn the whole area around the dear mother’s grave.

apol|býti, -ija, -ijo to shame, disparage: I’ll shame her: I’ll call her a cow, a pig.

apsi|glaudýti, -glaúdo, -glaũdė to cuddle, caress: When you get home, perhaps the old man will give you a little cuddle.

apsi|kelti, apsikelia, -kėlė to choose for oneself: I had chosen a load for myself.

apsi|manyti, -māno, -mānė to feel, become convinced: Uncle feels he may be able to walk and promises to go.

apsimynėlėlis, -ė (1) someone who is dirty: She was very dirty: you could wipe off the dirt with an apron.

apskrie|ti, -ja, -jo to outline, go around: When a bunion grows, you need to trace around it with the bone of a dead person, and it will stop growing.

apsmaug|ti, -ia, -ė to overpower, overcome: The bigger one will overpower the smaller one.

apsūkėlis (2) a round, very small patch of land: How many little meadows are here? Just a tiny patch.

apstremėk|l|inti, -ina, -ino (cf. traminti ‘to calm’) to scold: She would scold her: “You’re like this, you’re like that.”

aptūtalo|ti, -ja, -jo to wrap up warmly, dress warmly: They bundle him up like an old person and take him to the city.

ap|ūti, apūja, -ūjo to shoe: They started dressing her, dressing her, and left her such a simpleton.

apvartó|ti, -ja, -jo marry off, give in marriage: I have already married off both my children; I can die now.

apžir|ti, apžyra, -o begin to shimmer: Now I can no longer embroider like this: my eyes quickly begin to shimmer, tears run, and then I can see nothing.

ārdskelė (1) a pole placed across the threshing floor for laying the threshing beams on: Those ārdskelės are two in number: one is higher, the other lower. The ãrdai are laid on the ārdskelės.

atādrekis (1) thaw: When there is a thaw, they go hare hunting. The weather is no longer freezing; there is a thaw now.

atlapiùs, -i (4) trusting, carefree: I am very carefree: I leave everything at will (open, unlocked).

atsidvėsti, atsidvesia, atsidvėsė lose its strength through airing: The beer tastes bad—it has gone flat. They poured some beer that had gone flat.

atsitriš|yti, -ija, -ijo become tiresome, get on one’s nerves: Those drunkards have got on my nerves; I can’t stand them anymore.

atsivērsti, atsivērčia, atsivērtė boil over: I went to the cow, came back, and boiled over onto the bed.

atsižiūrė|ti, atsižiūria, -jo 1. take into account: He does not take another person into account: he works as he sees fit. 2. turn around, look back: Go and don’t look back!

atstó|ti, -ja, -jo △ nuo próto atstojęs not of sound mind: All the others are normal people, but he is completely out of his mind.

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to bring by cart, brings by cart, brought by cart △ to bring by cart ãtlaidus to bring treats for the church feast: He brought the church-feast treats the evening before (beer for the feast), and there was no longer any need to go to town.

a sprout (3ᵇ) shoot: The hop has been sprouting in our place since autumn.

a child weaned and then put back to the breast noun (3ᵇ) someone who is breastfed again after a break: A child put back to the breast is unsuitable: he may become a sorcerer.

native place noun (2) the place where one grew up: Here is my birthplace, my home place — I know everything here.

suitable for sheep-shearing adjective (1) used for shearing sheep: Bring me the shears for shearing sheep.

a cockchafer (2) cockchafer: Gather cockchafers and pour them into the bed for those little rascals. Cockchafers' legs are rough.

B

a closed place (3ᵃ) enclosed: When Uncle spreads manure, less enclosure is needed.

a bog (4) marsh: There is one bog over there, by that forest. That bog is full this year, like an eye — it's raining.

a narrow fence board (from dialect) (2) a narrow fence board: A fence made of narrow boards encloses the gardens very nicely. -little board (2): The little house is clad with green narrow boards.

garden balsam hybrid (from Latin) (1) small-flowered garden balsam (Impatiens balsamina): The garden balsams bloom in the beds.

a farmhand's wage (4) payment to a farmhand in a plot of land large enough to sow one pūras (48 kg) of barley, one pūras of oats and one siekelis of flax: Look how good his wages are: such fine barley — he must be lucky. △ to work as a farmhand for wages paid in plots: He used to work for land allotments and was very wealthy.

farmhand paid in land (2) farmhand who received payment in land: He did not want to work as a land-paid farmhand; he was not fit to be a steward.

to tap lightly, taps lightly, tapped lightly to tap: That doctor only tapped me from a distance, and that was that.

mute, unable to speak (2) mute person: The mute person cannot speak: he shows what he wants by pointing. a beggar (2): A beggar came; you have to give him something.

childless (1) without children: Old age is hard for the childless.

bičkorẽ|lis, -ė adj. (2) resembling a honeycomb in appearance: Dahlias are honeycomb-like and have their own beauty. Smaller flower heads grow on honeycomb-like dahlias.

birbynė (2) △ to be like a birbynė to be thin: That girl is like a birbynė: she has no belly at all, nothing there.

blùnkt onomatopoeia for the sound of falling: The rheumatism makes his legs very weak: blùnkt into bed—if you sit down, you won't get back up.

brangiai inquisitively, appreciatively: He looks so appreciatively at that sewing; he really wants to learn.

brazdė|ti, brázda, -jo to tick: It's tiny, yet your clock ticks well.

brúkšnėlis (2) a little cloud, a small cloud: It's getting cloudy, perhaps some little cloud of rain will come along.

bruzdukėlėlis (2) to turn the millstones to raise or lower them: The little bruzdukėlėlis snapped—it can no longer raise the millstones; a new cord is needed.

bùlbė (1) potato: The potatoes are very good this year.

bu-bulėlis (2) a chubby fellow: So handsome: round like a potato—like a little ball.

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C

čyruliū|ti, -ja, čyruliāvo to chirp, twitter: The lark chirps: it rises with its wings and descends again.

čiupn|ūs, -i (4) nimble: Nimble little fingers, so you caught the flea.

čiūprė (from Polish) (2) hair on the head: Such a handsome man: his hair is yellow. Tie on a kerchief, or hay will get tangled in your hair. The man got angry and tore off her hair: “Oh, you’ll pay for that later!”

čiurė|ti, čiura, -jo to chirp, squeak: The lapwings chirp, they say—the rye must already be sown.

čiurnėlis (2) the first knitted row of a glove or sock: Try making that cuff longer; this one is really too short now.

čiūžė|ti, čiūža, -jo to creak: Potato starch creaks.

D

dabōtojas, -a hybrid form (from Polish) (1) caretaker: You’ll let the old woman into those houses, and you’ll be her caretaker.

dagilėlis (2) snow bunting: Snow buntings appear in winter; they are rather small, pretty and black, with only a red throat.

dāigas (3) shoot, baby, figurative: One shoot has sprouted; another will appear soon. Such a young woman, yet already encumbered with babies—and she manages.

danėsti, danėsa, danėse to hear: The ears must hear everything.

dantinis noun (2) △ to throw a toothpick (a strip of peeled wood) from between the teeth so that it sticks into the ground (a shepherds’ game): At the end of the peeled strip, the shepherd, holding it between his teeth, lets the toothpick fly so that it sticks into the ground.

dantys (4) tooth: The teeth of the wing, where it catches the thread, broke off. His teeth crumbled. Apples are good for the teeth.

darbādienė (1) workday: They added five workdays for weeding the sugar beets.

dėjėja (1) one that lays: If a hen stops laying, slaughter it.

large, -er (1) 1. not small: Those children were still little when my mother died. 2. famous: She took the doctors to great lengths, and died all the same.

larger, -er (2) larger masonry (cave-dwelling) swallows.

old man (from Slavic) (2) old man: The beards of four old men are behind (in the riddle about a horse’s legs).

day (4) △ the foreman’s day: the day when the herdsman would tend the sheep for the shepherd of that farmstead: On the foreman’s day the shepherd stays at home—the foreman tends the flock for him that day. The shepherd is delighted: for me, the foreman’s day is like Pentecost.

clover singular (1) clover: Our clover was left beyond the road for seed. A machine was used to cut the clover. They are making clovercocks.

restless adjective (1) someone who cannot keep still: That child is so restless; those girls cannot defend themselves against him.

friendship (2) friendship: I would not have wanted to, but I drank some beer because of friendship.

dare dare: I was a young woman, and not a single man dared speak to me like that: if you behave this way, I turn my back on him.

linen cloth noun (2) linen fabric: Snakes cannot bite through linen cloth.

measles plural measles: That child of hers has measles: covered in red from head to toe, even the eyes—the children all catch that disease.

flogger (1) someone who used to beat people with rods: They would lay people on the straw benches, and the floggers would beat them with rods. The floggers were also people like them and would say: we’ll beat you, and you scream.

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bellows (1) bellows: There are no bellows in the forge anymore; the fire runs on electricity.

breathe heavily to breathe with difficulty: That old man is already gaping wide open and breathing heavily.

twin noun (2) twin: They had twins all at once.

E

gait (1) way of walking: You have a lovely gait: you swing your arms out to the sides and walk beautifully.

queue (4) turn: Death does not wait its turn.

F

phlox (1) (from Latin) phlox, garden phlox: Phlox blooms in large clusters, very beautifully: with colorful centers, and red ones, and white ones.

G

headboard (1) head end: Pull that headboard toward this side. Put the money between the beds, at the headboard.

gangreit approximately, almost: An owl’s head is almost like a cat’s; sometimes it resembles one; its legs are feathered, and its little beak is curved.

gãradas (from Slavic) (3b) barrier, pen: The pig broke out of the pen; we need to go and mend it.

gargãlė (2) figurative: radio: Turn off that radio: there’s nothing good on, it’s just babbling.

garsvyčios (1) mustard: Tiny as a mustard seed. Mustard is very pungent: it burns in your throat.

geidáu|ti, -ja, geidávo to desire, long for: Everyone wants them to move the bus stop.

gegutiūtis (1) young cuckoo: The wagtail hatched a young cuckoo.

geinys (4) 1. threads removed from the loom: Put the rods (splints) into the geinys to thread them, then pass them through the reed. 2. a curved stick with a long handle used to hit a ripka during a game: When he struck it with the geinys, that ripka really flew! 3. a certain game played with a curved stick: They drove the geinys out of the village street. △ mušti geinį to play a certain game with a geinys: The farmhands would go and play that geinys game.

geluõnė (2) boil with a yellow core: Two boils appeared on the finger.

genėt|as, -a (1) mottled, speckled, spotted: The linnet (common linnet) is speckled, only its throat is red. The skylark’s eggs are speckled, so pretty. The cuckoo is mottled, speckled, with reddish feathers; she is speckled all over.

gerai a lot: We had wanted to buy land for a long time.

gėrėj|as, -a (1) someone who drinks: There’s beer, but no drinkers; we’ll have to hire some.

gėring|as, -à (3) able to drink: She is very unable to drink.

gès|yti, -ija, -ijo to chase, drive about: She chased the ducklings so much that she hurt her leg.

giltinė (1) death: Many of my friends are gone now, but Death has forgotten me.

girià (4) coniferous forest: Pines and spruces grow mostly in the forest.

girtybė (1) drunkenness: He became insane from drinking.

gyvatienė (2) infusion of snakes in vodka: It is good to drink some gyvatienė.

glitė (2) snot: Taking out a handkerchief, he wiped away the snot. Better to outlive an old man’s beard than a young man’s snot (better to die after an old man).

grãbštel|ėti, -ja, -ėjo to grab, pinch: As he walked past, he gave the girl a pinch in the side.

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grąža (4) turning back: You’re already going the wrong way; you’ll have to turn back now.

grąžaila feminine (1) something beautiful: Our cow is beautiful.

grąžgalvė (1) a forest bird with brown, white, and gray feathers (lynx torquilla): The Eurasian wryneck has a long neck and twists its head. Wrynecks are afraid of ants because they attack their young. The wryneck is larger than a starling and rather elongated. The wryneck nests in a tree hollow. △ Like a wryneck: long-necked.

grėbčiai plural (2) rake-gatherings: The rake-gatherings need to be hauled in.

grybà (2) mushroom: The birch boletes only go mushy, but they are good mushrooms.

grieb|ti, -ia, -ė to take, to handle: Whatever he gets his hands on, he drives it: be it a car or a combine.

grindė (4) metal loop for threading a chain through: The dog unfastened itself from that loop and ran off.

gróbas (1) rib: He plowed with a machine and broke his ribs, too. They broke that matchmaker’s husband’s rib as well.

grobúon|is, -ė (1): Owls are cannibalistic: after hatching, they eat their own young.

gùdkūlis (1) lump, an untidily rolled bundle: He didn’t wrap or fold it neatly, but rolled it up into such a lump and tossed it aside. gudkūliukas (2) He rolled up such a little lump of intestines.

gùmė (2) rubber: Rubber sliced crosswise.

rubber (2) made of rubber: You need to let that piglet out with a rubber hose.

carnation (2) carnation: The flower garden is full of carnations; they bloom beautifully: red, variegated, pink.

I

to enter, enters, entered to step into, begin: I have already entered my eighty-first year.

iesmė (3) an amount of firewood that fits in the oven: That load of firewood has burned up already; put another one in. Maybe the oven is to blame, too: I burned three loads of firewood, and it left the bread raw; put another load of wood in—the grain may still not be dry (in the drying kiln).

attentively with attention: You listen attentively to every word.

feeder (3ᵃ) filler: I bought new feeders and filled the pillow.

to enter, enters, entered to step into, begin: I entered my eightieth year.

to sow, sows, sowed to sow, scatter seed: The rye was sown in wet soil, and nothing came of it.

intriguing, - (4) rare, interesting: Sing us a more intriguing song.

into, to: Go out into the air! day after day every day: How does she work? Day after day.

to fall into, falls into, fell into to end up in: Now whoever is the first to move in (to the vacant farms) gets to live there: there is no order, after all.

to manage to afford, manages, managed be able to buy: When you finally managed to buy a skirt, it was lovely.

to acquire, - to obtain, get settled: Could he really have acquired so many of those bees already?

to lodge, lodges, lodged to get stuck in: I had a stitch in my side today.

to burrow in, -s, burrowed in to embed itself: The tick burrowed into his arm.

įsiterp|ti, -ia, įsiterpė to enter, settle in: Valug (per) mótinos jinai įsiterpė ing tuos namus.

išagurk|úoti, -úoja, -ãvo to become leafy (of cucumbers): The cucumber leaves had become very leafy, but now they have fallen away after last night’s frost.

4. Leksikos tyrinėjimai

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iš|braukyti, -braūko, -braūkė 1. to carry off, scatter: Whatever there was, she took it all away when she died. 2. to pick clean, strip: She picked all the lingonberries while they were green.

išdūrti, išdūria, išdūrė to stretch out, extend: They were laying out a new road, and with elbows touching they couldn’t make it go straight.

to|go, goes, went to come true: In time it comes true: people predict it.

išgaidė|ti, -ja, -jo to turn into roosters (of chicks): All the little hens turned into roosters: good—there’ll be something to slaughter.

išgalė (1) circumstance: We’ll tell him all about that circumstance, and he says: good, I’ll help.

iš|gręžti, -gręndžia, -gręndė to pave: The bottom of the cellar is paved with such little bricks so that it won’t cave in.

išgrom|uōti, -uoja, -āvo to ruminate: If the cow rests, if she ruminates on those things, then you’ll give her the wolves.

iškalbis (1) eloquence: She is quick-witted when it comes to eloquence, sharp about all sorts of things.

iškatālin|ti, -a, -o to soak: The rain soaked that shepherd all day—he comes home in the evening wet.

išklý|sti, -sta, -do 1. to become dissolute: And he had gone astray: he went to the women. 2. to disperse: The house collapsed, and they all scattered outdoors. 3. to leave, depart: Because of this confusion he went out into the world, and I don’t know whether he is alive or dead.

iškluik|ti, -sta, -o to go astray, set out: He set out into the world.

iškurst|yti, -o, -ė to lure away; It’s a good thing we persuaded her to go; otherwise he wouldn’t have gone himself.

iškavė|ti, iškavka, -jo to become deranged: Had you gone completely mad before you died? He went completely mad, and that was that: he takes no notice of anything.

išl auž|ti, -ia, -ė to knock out: Don’t cork that wine too tightly: it’ll force the cork out; it needs to breathe.

to outdo, -does, -did to be superior: So you outdid her: he got a girl, while you got a son.

to thrash, -es, -ed △ to thrash someone's back to beat soundly, thrash: Those children grew up, thrashed him soundly, and drove him away.

to sing out, -s, -ed to sing out: The lark sings its song beautifully.

to scatter, -s, -ed to clear, make: In winter the paths are cleared; it's lovely. In winter they make paths for themselves. They made a big path.

to beat out, -s, -ed to thresh out: The hay had been beaten out of the windrows.

to puff out, puffs out, puffed out △ to thrash one's hide to beat, thrash: Good thing my brother wasn't there: they would have thrashed him soundly.

to squander, -s, -ed (cf. Latvian putēt) 1. to lose, forfeit, waste (through poor management): He squandered such a good opportunity. He squandered that farm because he was unable to manage it. He came home having squandered the farm. 2. to disappear: In the past wild cows used to roam in the forest; now they have disappeared—there are none left.

to embroider, -s, -ed to decorate with patterns, embroider: Give me those embroidered gloves.

to drive out, is driven out, -ed (from Russian) to drive out, chase away: The bottom of the stove has been driven out.

to sober up, -s, -ed to recover from drunkenness, sober up: He was drunk yesterday, but today he has sobered up.

to smoke through, -s, -ed to smoke thoroughly: When the sausages have been smoked through, you eat them uncooked.

to become loose, -s, -ed to become wobbly: The brushwood is placed there so the harrow won't become loose or stray to the sides.

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to hatch, -es, -ed to recover, regain strength: He finally recovered from that illness, and I had already thought he would die.

to wind, -s, -ed 1. to meander: The road meanders diagonally through the forest. 2. to be sung through: That song unfolds through all sorts of tunes.

to turn out, turns out, turned out to be unlike: That child is not his father’s: he is unlike the family.

to sleep off, sleeps off, slept off to cure through sleep: My illness cannot be slept off.

to slip one’s mind, slips one’s mind, slipped one’s mind △ to slip out of one’s mind to forget: That name slipped out of my mind.

to weaken, weakens, weakened to lose strength, grow weaker: My health is beginning to fail. The beer goes flat quickly.

to open up, -s, -ed to burst, open: The peas open up quickly from the rain.

to seem, seems, seemed to appear: It seems to me that she was not a doctor but a feldsher. It seems to me that I could not grow fond of that cow in the field.

cracklings plural (1) cracklings without fat: They used to give cracklings to the household (hired hands).

to dissolve, -s, -ed to melt: I’m afraid the rain will dissolve the sugar.

to weaken, weakens, weakened to grow weak: Now my health has already failed: someone says something, and I’m in tears.

to manage, manages, managed to get by: During Lent, one has to make half a barrel of herring suffice for the household.

to break out in, -s, -ed △ to break out in a rash to be covered with spots or blisters: Stinging nettles are nasty: they quickly bring out a rash, and it itches badly.

to tear, tears, tore to wrench, tear out: When he fell, he tore those muscles in his calf.

depravity (2) naughtiness: There is plenty of mischief among the shepherds.

suddenly abruptly: As soon as he said it suddenly, his hands began to tremble.

išvartó|ti, -ja, -jo to marry off, arrange the marriage of: Jau móčia dukterį išvartójo. The mother has already married off her daughter. Jau abiòdu vaikai támstos išvartóti. You have already married off both children. Paskutinį vaiką išvartójau. I married off the last child.

išverk|ti, -ia, išverkė to see someone off with tears: Mãs (mes) jį išverkėme ing kariuomenę. We saw him off in tears as he went into the army.

išvilk|ti, išvelka, -o to sing out, draw out: Kregždės visokiom notom išvelka tą giesmę. The swallows sing that song in all sorts of notes.

itin especially, very: Užkaitinsiu vandenį itin karštai. I’ll heat the water until it is very hot.

J

jaik|tis, -iasi, -ėsi to feel nauseated: Reiks vėmti, neišliksiu nevėmus: teip jaukiasi po kriūtine, negera. I’ll have to vomit; I won’t be able to hold it in without throwing up: it feels so unpleasant in my chest, I feel sick.

jauny|lis, -ė (2) the youngest: Aš jau pati jaunylė, o mán jau penkiasdešimt metų. I’m the youngest now, and I’m already fifty years old.

jaun|nis, -ė adjective (2) the youngest: Ta jau pati jaunė ant dãkterės išėjo. She was the youngest daughter.

jaunužūk|as, -ė adjective (2) young animal: Būvo nutvėrę jaunužūkę kiáunę. They had caught a young marten.

jęibu if: Jęibu senas nabãšnykas, užsiriša juodą skarelę. If the old deceased man... he ties on a black kerchief. Jęibu atsigulsi, nebeatsikelsi. If you lie down, you won’t get up again.

junkinỹs (3ᵇ) lover: Vyk tu laũk tą junkinį. Get that lover out of here. Prilìmpa prie mergų tõks junkinỹs: nė jis ženijasi, nė niẽko. That sort of lover keeps hanging around the girls: he neither marries nor does anything.

K

kabaldėlė (dialect; 2) patched, of something broken: That old kabaldėlė of a bicycle has been like that forever.

kabal|iuóti, -iuoja, -iãvo to hang: If he wants to hang himself, let him dangle there; don't go near him.

kãbaras (3ᵇ) someone slow-moving, with an ungainly gait: Those men are such kãbarai; they go limping across the yard.

^4*

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kabavó|ti, -ja, -jo hybrid: to check, question: If anyone questions you on the road, show your papers. They checked his documents.

kačiõkas (2) kitten: The kitten has slipped under the loom.

kagė|ti, kãga, -jo to cluck: The hen comes clucking: she has laid an egg and had a drink of water. Then she clucks again.

kãliakraštis (1) scrap of leather, edge: They made leather shoes from the edge scrap.

kãklas (4) 1. △ throat disease, diphtheria: Throat diseases quickly choke a child. 2. steering, figurative: The man is the head, the woman the neck: wherever the neck turns, the head looks.

kanapė|as, -a (1) freckled: Three freckled men are coming.

kãnas (cf. Latvian kañņa) (4) large metal vessel: It wouldn’t be so hard to milk those cows, but those cans are heavy to lift.

kańtat|as, -a (from Slavic) (1) satisfied: Give the cow clean water; she won’t be satisfied. The men aren’t satisfied—there’s no drink.

kãpinnykas (1) caretaker of a cemetery: Mother gave five rubles to the cemetery caretaker (gravedigger), and the graves were put in order.

kapl|iuoti, -iúoja, -iãvo to hoe: He set about hoeing the garden plots. The women have been hoeing the sugar beets since morning.

kàpšena (for the suffix, cf. Latvian krišana) (1) dying, end, conclusion: That cat’s end is near, since it’s yowling there, all foaming at the mouth.

karklỹs (4) snoring: What’s that snoring here! I look, and he’s asleep sitting on the loom bench, snoring loudly.

to comb flax, -s, -ed: They pull up the flax, take it home, and comb it in the threshing floor: the seed heads fall off. The flax breakers are nailed to the wall, and they comb the flax.

typhoid fever plural (1): Don’t go visit him, in case you catch typhoid fever; typhoid fever is contagious.

slight bitterness (2) tartness: Those apples are still a little bitter; they aren’t ripe yet.

little pigeon (1): The little pigeons are running around the barn on the beam. The little pigeons are made of clay (clay ones), beautiful.

ribbon (2): She bought a very, very wide ribbon. One must tie oneself up with a ribbon.

immoral woman, girl hybrid form (1): She’s already such an immoral woman: she’s always trying to seduce someone else’s husband.

to clear, -s, -ed (from Slavic) to clean: They bring helpers to help clear the fields.

some kind of, -s, -such (1) excellent, very good: Oats don’t really taste all that good, after all.

cluster (2) bunch: The flowers bloom in lovely clusters. The rowan grows with large clusters—it will be a rainy autumn.

fire hook (2) (cf. Latvian keksis) a forked pole with a long shaft and curved claws, used to put out fires: The fire hook is standing beside the granary. In our yard there was a ladder, while in yours there was a fire hook. When a house catches fire, three men link up with the fire hook, pull down the walls, and put out the flames.

period of time (1): the interval from getting up until breakfast, or from breakfast until lunch, or from lunch until supper: When you’ve finished getting ready, you can sit for the whole period. In two periods I weeded the sugar beets.

turning place (1): an untilled patch of meadow near the barn, a turning place: There is also a turning place here (to turn around).

clumpy, -s (1): with clump-like clouds, lumpy: The sky is clumpy: there’ll be larger clumps of potato plants.

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to dig, digs, dug to root around, overturn: If moles dig up the gardens, you need to take a buckthorn twig and stick it into that hole with your left hand, without looking back.

keptin|lis, -ė (2) made from roasted malt: Beer can also be brewed by roasting: grind the malt, put it by the oven, pour boiling water over it and let it ferment—roasted-malt beer. Roasted-malt beer is reddish and has its own flavor.

keriaužėlis m. (2) someone unattractive and short, who does not grow: There, such a little keriaužėlis: small, bald—what kind of man is that? She's a woman—a keriaužėlis.

kėsai plural (2) belongings, things: Take your things and go, while we and the children will stay, since you keep running off there.

kiáurai 1. entirely, wholly, completely: The woodpecker is entirely speckled. 2. well, clearly: My eyes are still good: when someone walks along the forest, I can see clearly. 3. for that long: The dog barks continuously until I leave. 4. in vain: when you sow in young fallow, the peas bloom in vain.

kibar|uotis, -uojasi, -avosi to flirt, to make advances: They are flirting here in that meadow, while I need to walk past.

kibirkštėlė (2) tiny crumb, speck: He won't take even a tiny crumb of the weight.

kirstojėlis (2) little woodcutter: I walk through the orchard, by that little birch, and look—three little woodcutters come riding up plural.

kirviāmal kiai plural (1) firewood prepared without a saw: I bought axe-cut firewood. The axe-cut firewood is stacked.

klėckai (from Slavic) plural (2) milk soup with lumps of flour dough: I cooked them—oh my goodness—what came out were rather thick klėckai!

klėst: All the women are sitting around, sitting there.

klýkolti, -ia, -jo to cry out, shout: Why are you shouting here? No one is afraid of you!

klýslti, -sta, -do to lose one's way, get lost: I lost my way and walked a long distance on foot.

klūga (cf. Latvian klūga) (1) cord made from tree bark: The bark cords are twisted, and the fence is made.

kliūrkt kūkt: In spring, the toads start croaking: kliūrkt kikt, kliūrkt kūkt.

klōdas (2) floor, bottom, ground on which something is laid: The hay lying on the klōdas is still a little damp.

kneřk|ti, -ia, -ė to hoot, screech, lament: Owls hoot and laugh.

knerp|lyš, -ė noun (4) a grumbler: That old man is such a grumbler; he won’t stop grousing.

kneřp|ti, -ia, -ė to grumble, complain: Why are you grumbling, when the bedbug (kinivarpa) is there? Just say what you didn’t like.

knieža (cf. kniežti) noun (1) someone who is dissatisfied, constantly grumbles, complains, and nags: Such a grumbler, no good to anyone: he keeps grumbling and grumbling as he walks behind you.

kniež|ti, -ia, -ė (cf. Latvian kniežēt ‘to itch, prickle’) to grumble constantly, complain, be dissatisfied: It’s awful for me when Grandma sits all day and nags at you without stopping: this is no good, that is no good. She comes home, eats, and goes out again, while at home the old man nags at you all day.

knýnas (from Slavic) (2) cumin: A lot of cumin has been gathered, and a tubful has been brought in.

knit|ėntis, -ėnasi, -ėnosi to crawl about, tickle: The legs of the cockchafers are prickly: they tickle a lot when one crawls in somewhere.

knitė|ti, kničia, -jo to tingle, go numb: When I write for a long time, my fingers keep tingling: I need to let my hand rest.

knūn|ti, -a, -o to tickle, tease: It keeps tickling me here at the back of my neck: maybe an ant has crawled in.

knūkt in one gulp: I gulped it all down at once.

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knívarpas (1) kinivarpa: The walls are full of woodworms: the woodworms will leave you penniless.

knūp|ti, knūmpa, -o to stumble: That horse was galloping fast, stumbled, and broke its leg.

kojūgalė (1) the foot end: We’ll put the foot end of the coffin against the wall.

kōk|s, -ia (4) what kind of: I walked around a little, and there were only about five women.

kōlek as long as: Once you’ve loved someone, then keep loving them as long as your eyes are closed; but nowadays they keep changing partners, like a Gypsy horse.

koš|ti, -ia, -ė to strain: When the kidneys are burdened by alcohol, they no longer strain it out.

košvirėlis (2) a thick-bellied clay cup: Long ago there were cups like these, with a handle, made of clay and constricted in the middle: thicker at the center, narrower at the bottom and top—we called them košvirėliai. Scoop up some water with a košvirėlis.

kránsa b. (1) an old, decrepit person: Such a decrepit old man—I no longer respect a person like that. Could someone as old and frail as that kránsa have children? Others help him. kransėlė (2): That cat has become a complete little wreck—there’s nothing left of it.

kráutnyk|as, -ė (1) shopkeeper: A female shopkeeper lives at one end.

kregždūtis (1) young swallow: The young swallows are already settling on the wires; autumn is here.

krėmblis (2) a pyramid-shaped piece of birch or other hardwood that had to be knocked down with a ripka during a game: Roll that ripka so it bounces against the krėmblis and knocks it over. They would set up four krėmbliai and try to knock them down with a ripka. △ to knock down a krėmblis to play a certain game: Let’s go knock down a krėmblis.

krėnikis (2) (cf. Latvian krankšķēt) anxiety, worry: Out of such great worry, he drank a glass of beer, though he never used to drink.

krėšnė (2) sweet cherry: I liked your sweet cherries better than sour cherries: sweet cherries are red and ripen very quickly. krėšnėlė (2): There was one little sweet-cherry tree in the orchard: every year it was laden with fruit, packed tightly together.

krietn|ūs, -i (4) (cf. Latvian krietns, krietns) upright, honest: Father was not upright: he was a drunkard. He is upright: he wouldn’t hurt a soul. That dishonest girl: she consorts with men.

krigulis (1) a distortion, a bend: When you’re embroidering, you have to make sure one isn’t here and another there, so there aren’t any such kriguliai.

kripšlas (2) a speck: He sees a speck in someone else’s eye. kripšlėlis (2): The butter needs to be washed thoroughly so there isn’t even a tiny speck in it. kripšlytīs (1): A tiny speck got into my eye and is irritating it.

kri|sti, kriinta, -to to fall: Those starlings fall as if they’ve gone mad, to eat cherries. How those women fell on that foreman!

kriūtīnė (2) chest: My chest is congested.

krýžmais face down, with arms stretched out to the sides: In the old days they punished girls who had children very severely: they would order them to lie face down with their arms outstretched.

kruopė|tas, -a (1) composed of small particles, as if made of groats: The honey is so beautiful, so yellow, so grainy!

kūirin|tis, -asi, -osi to scratch oneself, rub against something: Why are you scratching so cleanly? As if you’d been attacked by little bees?

kuksė|ti, kūksia, -jo to hiccup: I ate too much and started hiccupping.

kuk|ūoti, -ūoja, -āvo to croak (of frogs): Long ago frogs used to croak in the marshes.

kūlėjas (1) threshing machine: The tractor pulls the threshing machine. The threshing machine has been pulled back home.

kūlynas (1) thickets, young woodland: Alder and willow thickets grow in the forest. Don’t go into those thickets: there are lots of stinging nettles growing there. When the women found raspberries in the thickets,

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they crossed it out at once, and nothing remained. kūlynelis (2) thickets, a little wood: Red mushrooms among tiny kūlynnėliai.

kūlynė (2) the reed of a little pipe made from alder bark: Blow the reed pipe through the kūlynė into the little horn.

kūlokas (from Slavic) (2) fist: I study and study, and know nothing; they say you need to hit someone on the head with your fists, and then you’ll know everything; while studying, I struck my forehead with my fists so I would remember everything.

kumėlspenis (1) a white edible mushroom, a stinkhorn (?): Kumėlspeniai are white mushrooms, with pinched-looking caps, and are edible. People gather kumėlspeniai in spring. The caps of kumėlspeniai are pointed, and their stems are thicker.

kumietis (from Slavic) (2) farmhand: Kapsūkas drove the farmhands out of our region.

kuplì adjective (4) pregnant: Martėlė is already pregnant.

kurklėlis (2) brown grasshopper: The kurklėlis croaks among the meadows. The kurklėlis resembles a little goat (grasshopper), only reddish-brown.

kurkliai plural (2) tadpoles: Frog tadpoles develop from frogspawn. Kurkliam need warm water.

kušė|ti, kuša, -jo to stir, work: Is your father still stirring about, then?

kuštė|ti, kušta, -jo to go: Perhaps you’ll go to work yet?

kūtelýtė (1) little barn: Drive the goslings into the little barn.

kvartūgas (from Slavic) (2) apron: You’ve tied on a rather dirty apron.

L

láibgalis (1) a long garter: Viržio láibgalis įvertas ing paval kus, o drūžgalis užnarýtas ant braníkto.

labiai 1. very: You got a very bad person. The cuckoo is very speckled. Whoever has a head should learn very well. 2. entirely: You used to dislike beer entirely; you were a very poor drinker, but now you drink it.

láima (1) good fortune: He has good fortune.

laiming|as, -à (3): That woman is fortunate because she does not drink beer.

laiškanėš|is, -ė (2) letter carrier: The female letter carrier brings letters and a pension.

lañk stymas (1) bending: By the time he finishes cutting it, there will still be plenty of tongue-bending to do.

lankúot|as, -a (1) having hoops: You barrel, you’re hooped, and you no longer give us any beer.

lapūkas (2) a leafy branch of a tree (usually alder): Break off a leafy branch and brush the flies off the horse.

lã stos pl. (2) a chest for geese to lay and hatch their eggs: The girl was lying on the nesting boxes. The geese go to lay and hatch their eggs in those nesting boxes.

laukin|is, -ė noun (2) a rural resident, an inhabitant of a village or isolated homestead: When the villages dispersed, many rural people appeared.

lauk|ti, -ia, -ė △ to be laukíama to be pregnant, in calf: How could that cow have had a calf if she was not pregnant?

lazdà (4) potato haulm: The potato haulms have dried up; it is time to dig them up. The potatoes bloomed beautifully—the haulms are yellow.

lei (cf. Latvian lei) let: Let the animal lie down, let it rest!

léip|ti, -ia, -jo to weaken, waste away: We sat down, and she was just wasting away, aching: she would rise like that and then again.

léis|ti, -džia, -dė △ kraujais to have bloody diarrhea: She was already passing blood, but I cured her.

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lėkas (2) gladiolus (Gladiolus communis): The young woman had picked such beautiful gladioli: white, very large.

lenkė (2) runner of a sleigh: The two runners are hewn from wood; there are four spokes on the runners.

len|ūs, -i (4) slow: Such a slow man got such a lively wife. That cow is slower, and you couldn't get close to that one.

lėpnai gently, slowly: Nowadays children grow up easily: they know no hardship.

liáu|ti, -na, liōvė to let, allow (cf. Latvian ļaut ‘to permit’): She gave up on getting married and got married. Mother lets him go driving, but he himself doesn't go.

lieting|as, -a (1) rainy: It is a rainy autumn this year.

liežiūviai plural (2) gossip: She goes around with the gossips and flirts.

lig 1. prep. until (with the accusative): By daybreak, grain needs to be ground; (with the instrumental) Where will you go? Lie down at dawn, and we'll sleep until daytime. When you're drunk, drink and want more; drink and want more, until you have to fall to the ground. 2. conj. if: If only she had struck then, I wouldn't have kept quiet. lig šitolei up to here: The shirts were embroidered up to here.

lȳgiai like, as if: You speak as if you were small. You speak as if you had a cough. From biting that apple, I have a pain running through my teeth.

lȳgin|ti, -a, -o to accuse someone of adultery with another: A fight broke out—they started making accusations: you slept with him, you were her lover.

linaraūtis (2) flax-pulling season: The girls go from the field to pull flax and sing.

lingėlė (2) cradle, swing: I'll make a little swing from the top, and with that swing I'll rock the girl.

liniēn|is, -ė (2) linen: The linen sheaves are very poor this year.

lišti, leĩda, liĩdo to put on: The ring goes onto the finger with some difficulty. △ lišti į úodegą to flatter: She keeps tugging at her skirt, while he just sprawls; you see how men are: first they fawn on you, and then they want nothing more.

liumpsē|ti, liùmpsia, -jo to move, sway: We used to swing, and that bridge would sway.

liūotega (cf. Latvian luōtaga) (1) a whip, stick: That man took a whip and is coming closer. I'll give you a whack with it, you'll see!

liùrlin|ti, -a, -o to make play, to turn: It seems he is still not feeling well: that radio is not playing either.

lóva (1) grave: They buried both of them in one grave. I went to the cemetery to tend my grandfather’s grave.

lūskanos (from Latvian) plural (1) scales: The fish’s scales are hard: you can’t scrape them off—it’s very difficult.

lūžnis singular (2) (cf. Latvian lūznis) junk, unnecessary things: How much of this lūžnis is here on that shelf: I gathered it up and threw it out.

M

maigýtis, maĩgosi, maĩgėsi to twist, rub against one another, jostle: The shavings twisted and twisted around that chain and snapped the rope.

māktiŋ|gas, -a (1) (cf. Latvian maktīgs) strong, good-looking: She was a strong, good-looking girl, but now she has worn herself out with those exams. The bridegroom was handsome, a strong man. Bernatautienė died, a strong woman.

mantà (4) movable property: Five wagons were carrying belongings. The wagons were loaded with belongings. Their belongings were very numerous.

mās we: We were driven out of our homes during the war.

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mãšina (1) car: The car overturned at that bend.

matytis, mãtosi, mãtėsi to seem, appear: It seemed to me that he had come home drunk, but I look—and he hasn’t.

mãukd|ytis, -osi, -ėsi to bathe: Completely stiff with cold, she rarely bathes. We used to bathe in the middle of those deep waters.

maũrin|as, -à (3ᵇ) muddy, full of sludge: Muddy children, only their eyes are shining.

mažỹl|is, -ė adjective (2) 1. little, small: A ferret caught that little chicken. 2. youngest: Their youngest girl is good at school—all top marks.

maž|iūtis, -iūtė (2) tiny: The cuckoo is as big as a calf—not tiny anymore. -iutýtis, -iutýtė (1) very tiny: Those bites of ours—heaven help us! When something so tiny bites, you could almost cry.

mãžvaikis (1) small child: The little ones liked those swings.

mẽdžgalis (1) stick, rod: I’ve finished smashing all the sticks.

medžiõklis (2) hunter: My brothers were great hunters.

mėg|ti, -ia, -o to like: Borscht is a matter of taste: some like it more sour, some sweeter. -tis: It’s very unpleasant when flies start landing on the table.

meitėlis (1) boar △ meitėlių ieškóti to come into heat: When the pig squeals loudly and climbs onto the walls, she’s looking for a boar.

melínsv|as, -à (4) bluish: The alder trees have a bluish hue.

menkiš|ius, -ė (2) someone of shabby appearance: A shabby-looking person arrived.

mẽntalas (3ᵇ) porridge made from rye flour: She cooked mẽntalas for the garsvytis plants. They mix the mẽntalas with garsvytis, leave it to sour, and it makes a very tasty dish.

mergẽšė (2) girl, daughter: They left the farm to the girl.

mergìčkà (2) hybrid form: daughter: They had a girl.

mešà (4) △ live badger: On an iron plate—a live badger (a horseshoe-shaped hoof).

meškõtis (2) wooden bowl: Cut yourself some cheese with the meškõtis.

mẽšlavežtis (1) manure cart: She gets sick from the manure cart.

mėt|yti, -o, -ė 1. to make, dig: In winter, you have to clear the paths. Why are you clearing the paths—who’s coming? 2. to reproach: She started reproaching me: “I gave you this, I gave you that.”

mẽzgas (4) knot: Tie a knot, and that hand stops hurting.

mik|lėnti, -ėna, -ėno to turn around, flirt: While courting that girl, he’s flirting. Will you marry him?

min|ti, -a, -ýnė to run, hurry: A poor person never gets any rest: always rushing about.

miškas (4) deciduous forest: In the forest grow bird cherries, willows, alders, birches, aspens, oaks, and lindens.

mitrėnga (from Sl.) (1) disorder, commotion: What kind of commotion is this? The windows are smashed, the doors are wide open.

mója (1) mother: Go to your own mother—why are you standing here! She’s a mother now: she has a child.

mojėlė (2) grandmother: Grandma works around the house and looks after the children. mojýtė (1) mommy: That mommy of yours is mean: she just keeps shouting. I’ll tell your mommy now.

moksó|ti, mókso, -jo to stare blankly: Be quiet, keep staring, and you’ll turn into an ox.

mólmyn|is, -ė adj. (1) dirty, always filthy: She’s a filthy girl: all bedraggled, covered in grime; still so young, yet already so slovenly.

molúot|as, -a (1) clay-colored: Clay-colored cows are multicolored: white, gray, and brown.

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móterė (1) woman: That woman has to take care of everything. This woman has no time to be well: get pregnant, stop breastfeeding, give birth, and so on, and so on.

mūkenos pl. (1) intestines, something very worn out: Put away such worn-out things; they don't throw them away.

mūrin|is, -ė (2) burrow-dwelling: The sand martin under the bridge: she plastered around that nest, leaving only a small hole for the little one to get out.

murmul|iuoti, -iuoja, -iavo to run or gush forcefully: Blood is gushing from his mouth.

mūš|ti, -a, -ė to let out: See how those tomatoes are sending out shoots. △ mūšti rėkežį to play a certain game in which one tries to knock down two sticks placed on an alder tripod, called a little frog: Let's go play rėkežis! The young lads used to play that rėkežis too. The shepherd boys also went to play rėkežis when the cows lay down in the fields at midday. When someone knocks down the little frog on the rėkežis, they run to set it up again.

N

nabašnikas (from Slavic) (1) deceased person: We don't have a dead man, so we'll lie down in the coffin ourselves; nabašnikėlis (2) (usually said of children): Here is my little deceased one, still in the cradle.

nãgos (4) △ to curl up one's toes to die: In a year or two, we'll curl up our toes too.

namėlė 1. at home: I was still at home. We stayed at home; we didn't go to school. 2. homeward: Go home, sir!

namólė homeward: Karolis Požela had only once come home.

nastārnas (2) aster: The asters bloom very beautifully: red, yellowish, and white—in all sorts of colors. Asters start blooming early, since they grow abundantly.

naujikas (2) growth, tumor: A growth like that began to develop. They cut out that growth, and the person is alive.

naujikaulis (1) tumor: He got cancer from a tumor and died.

nė △ nė šiaip toli not even remotely: That child's stepfather—not even remotely related.

nedėgulis (1) glowing ember: Bright red, like a glowing ember.

nedidū|tis, -ė (2) small: The little aspens are still small. The birch leaves are small.

nedūo|ti, -da, nėdavė △ nedūoti nė ant angliės not let near, keep at a distance: Whichever way you think of going, don't let him near at all: he will be trusted.

nervō|ti, -ja, -jo (cf. Latvian nervuot) to mock, criticize: Jauni nervoja tikėjimą. Ji visi nervoja, kad girtuoklis.

nesismagė|ti, nesismagia, -jo to feel uncomfortable: Teip nesismagia mán tamsta.

netoli adv. almost, as, similar to: Kitų vardai netoli šuniės (nežmoniški).

suniāuks|ėti, -ia, -ėjo to whimper: Kātinas suniāuksėjo ir užlėkė ant aukšto.

nikte|ėti, -ia, -ėjo to give a little knock: Mán koja nik telėjo.

niur|gti, - zgia, -zgė to speak indistinctly: Jis niužgia ir niužgia: suprasti negali, ką kalba.

niurk|yti, -o, -ė to grind: Mán vieną šil telė dańčio paliko: niurkkyk niurkkyk tą valgį.

nósė (1) nose: Tāmstos nósė gangreit (beveik) kaip vānago.

notà (2) tune, melody △ prišekti nòtą to follow the tune being played: Mās tūriame prišekti nòtą. užturėti nòtą to keep the melody in tune: Kai dainūoji, reikia užturėti nòtą. užžiūrėti nòtą to keep one’s voice at the correct pitch: Kur neprātė dainūoti, neužžiūria

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nõtos. nõtai to go off key to sing out of tune: Jau vėl ta notà išklìso, vėl reikės burnojè su liežuviu ją suràsti.

nu|daryti, -dãro, -dãrė to dye: Ar tàvo tie plaukai nudaryti, kad tokie geltòni.

nudūk|ti, -sta, -o to go, to fly off (of a drunk person): Gal pasigėręs į miestą nudūko?

nūgara (1) △ dãlgės nūgara the side of the scythe opposite the blade, the spine: The back of the scythe is thicker, while the blade is thinner.

nugýb|ti, -sta, -o to become haggard, grow thin, lose one’s looks: Just look how haggard she is—do you have worms?

nugõglin|ti, -a, -o to sneak off, to go (with needless pride): She strutted off into those bushes, puffed up with pride.

nugulti, nūgula, nūgulė to lie down, take a nap: You need to go lie down after dinner until that cottage cools off.

nu|kilti, -kỹla, -kìlo to travel away: Go farther away—it’s very hard to understand one another.

nukiūr|ti, -sta, -o to become holed through and through: His nose got all holey from the cart. And his nose is full of holes, and his teeth too—nothing can help him.

nukiut|énti, -ėna, -ėno to move slowly toward: The girl slowly made her way over to the beehive and began handling those bees.

nuklūk|ti, -sta, -o to go mad: After a sleepless night from fright, a person is like a madman in the morning: their head aches and spins.

nukranė|ti, -ja, -jo to grow old, wear out: An old man worn out with age—there’s nothing left of him, not a damn thing. Men who spend too much time with girls grow old quickly.

nukrì|sti, nukrìnta, -to to die (of an animal): One piglet suddenly died.

nukuštėl|ti, nukušta, -jo to make one’s way slowly: By the time they slowly made their way there, it was already late, and they left.

nu|laikyti, nulaiko, nulaikė to nurse someone through old age: She undertook to nurse him in return for that land.

nulė|isti, -džia, -dė to pull off, pull down: He would pull off his trousers and trudge along stark naked.

△ to fell from one’s feet to kill, murder: I’ll soon fell that old man.

to throw off, throws off, threw off △ to drop one’s hand, give up: When he dislikes something, he drops his hand and goes out into the air.

to weave, -s, -ed to weave: She used to make such little nets for catching hares.

judgment (1) understanding: To bake bread, you need to have good judgment about how to mix and knead it. He no longer had any judgment—he was so drunk.

gently smoothly, evenly: The stream flows smoothly.

to scratch, -es, -ed to scratch, scrape: My hand is scratched; I won’t give you that.

to knit patterns, -s, -ed to knit in patterns: I know how to knit a mitten beautifully with two strands of yarn.

to thin out, -s, -ed to thin, space out: I thinned out some of the beets first; that’s already half the battle.

to fly, -s, -ed to fly off, turning and swaying: It was midday, and I saw—ačėvaras (a kite) flew off, swaying over the treetops.

to sit down, sits down, -ed to sit for a while: Just sit in the cottage for an hour or two; soon it will start, start in your head. He folds his hands, sits and sits, and then eats again.

to wear oneself out, -s, -ed to wear oneself down: Her mother wore herself out over the years, and that’s why she is like that.

to get dirty, -ies, -ied to soil oneself: I got my feet dirty in the cowshed!

to squirm, -s, -ed to writhe: The cat writhed and writhed.

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nusiskan|áuti, -áuja, -ávo to make something reach the desired degree of goodness or warmth: Nusiskanáuk támsta vántą, kad nùgarą nenúplikytum! Nusiskanaváu vándeni — mán geriaũ vėsesnis.

nusišmaĩž|yti, -ja, -jo to get dirty, smear oneself: Pareiña visas nusišmaĩžojęs su tais móliais, nespėja jo nė pláuti.

nusi|švaityti, -švaito, -švaitė to scatter away: Nubudau, ir miegai nusišvaĩtė.

nusitarti, nusitaria, nusitarė to expect, suppose: Mãs nusitarėme, kad támsta parvė- ši mum saldainių.

nusitrĩš|yti, -ija, -ijo (cf. also trišėti ‘to tremble’, Latvian trišēt) to be horrified, shudder: Aš labai nusitrĩšiju, kad vỹras pãčią mùša.

nuskaũdin|ti, -a, -o to beat severely: Kai tą bóbą (žmoną) nuskaũdina, jinai atbėga pas mán.

nusklaũb|ti, -ia, nùskliaubė to cut off or clip in general: Švárko galaĩ nùskliaubti — lygiai kaip advikãto.

nusmáug|ti, -ia, -ė to strangle: Trìs mano vaikelìus kaklų ligos (difteritas) nusmáugė.

nusmìlk|ti, -sta, -o to become sooty: Labiaĩ jau nusmìlkusi pẽčiaus kaktą.

nusodin|ti, -a, -o to stud, cover with: Kóks gražùmas tõ kùdikio: sãulė kãktoje, mėnuo pakaušyje, visas žvaigždėm nusodintas.

nuspirti, nùspiria, nuspýrė △ perkūnijai nuspirti to strike down (cf. Latvian pērkuonam nùospērt): Jos vỹrą perkūnija nuspyrė.

nu|stirti, -stỹrsta, -stỹro to be caked with dirt: Nabagė — kaip iš mólio išlipus: nustỹrus visa, čystai paniekinta.

nustumti, nùstumia, nustùmė to push off: Šìlta labiaĩ, skarelę nustūmiau nuo galvós.

nušliauk|ti, -ja, nušliaukė to sweep off from the top: Su šlúota gražiaĩ nušliaukìa tuos grūdus, kad šiaudgalių nebūtų.

nu|taisyti, -taiso, -taisė to smear: Tokį naują drabužį, ir teip greit nutais ei. Kur teip nutais ei tą skarelę? Jau tiek nutaisyta ta nosinė — bjauru ir žmogų parodyti.

nuvárdin|ti, -a, -o to treat with an incantation, cure by means of a charm: Eina nuvárdinti ròžę pas burtininkus.

O

hay (3) field: Hay can stand out in the open air for a long time.

grasshopper (2) 1. grasshopper: Grasshoppers hop across the meadows. 2. common snipe: Snipes bleat like goats in spring by the ponds.

P

adolescent adjective (1) adolescent: Their adolescent daughter died.

temperament (2) 1. manner, character: Such a person has a fiery temperament. She is fiery all over. 2. appearance: He has a thin appearance. She has a stern appearance.

pinfeather (2) pinfeather: When the pinfeathers start growing on hens, you can’t even catch them. When goslings grow pinfeathers, they hurt a lot: their pinfeathers are sore, so you shouldn’t handle them then. little pinfeather (2): The chicks’ little pinfeathers are already coming in; soon they’ll be covered in little feathers.

covered with pinfeathers (1) covered with pinfeathers: Those hens are so covered with pinfeathers—they’re moulting.

lean-to (1) roofed shelter (usually beside a barn): They put the wheels in that lean-to, store the sleds there, and stack the wood.

sky^3b) sky: Such a long streak of light flies across the sky—it’s a meteor.

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padegės|is, -ė noun (2) an arsonist: How many such arsonists come here.

padūlin|ti, -a, -o to smoke, fill with smoke: If you smoke them out, the bees sting less.

pagà alongside, by: Frogs jump alongside the puddles, alongside the bushes.

pagalam (cf. Latvian pagalam) △ būti pagalam to be faded: The little cat must be faded by now—it hasn’t been seen for several days.

paginės plural (1) fine flour that has sifted down beside the millstone: I’ll cook you delicious little dumplings from the finest flour siftings. dialect.

pagirti, pagiria, pagyrė to praise: He was a man praised by everyone: an average, capable worker.

pagriūti, -grūva, -grūvo 1. to lie down for a while: Go and lie down for a bit, ma’am; you’ve tired yourself out writing. 2. to die: Rest in peace: Rudis has passed away.

pagurklės plural (1) dewlap: The rooster’s wattles are red, while its whole body is light-colored. The lapwing’s throat is white.

pailsis (1) rest: There’s no rest when you’re raising children.

paist|yti, -o, -ė to tell, explain, chatter: I need to wash up while I’m chattering away.

paišinybė (1) dirt, uncleanliness: And look at the dirt on those hands—well, just look at what kind of a brigade leader’s wife she is.

pãkalis (cf. Latvian pakaļš) (1) backside: She had such a big backside, and was full all over; but she’ll get better again, rest, and be fine.

pakly|sti, -sta, -do to thaw: Has it thawed? It’s raining while the sun is shining.

pakógo|ti, -ja, -jo to linger, barely stay alive: He’ll linger a little longer, perhaps he won’t die yet, but he won’t live long. That old beast won’t croak just yet; it’ll linger a little longer.

pakrósnės plural (1) ashes and coals from a bathhouse stove: Back when there were bathhouses, they used to scatter those stove ashes over the rue—the rue would turn green, even dark green.

pakuišlė (2) a boggy, wet, bush-covered area: That stream starts in places like these boggy thickets. There are such boggy thickets here, marshes.

pakūlynis (1) thicket: I walked through all the thickets and found no berries, only one berry bush.

pakum|pas, -a (4) somewhat humped, bent: His nose was hooked—a handsome man. The tree is bent over—it has the disease called cancer.

pakumpnõs|is, -ė (2) someone with a hooked nose: His father was such a hooked-nosed man. He got one with a hooked nose like that.

pakurà sing. (3ᵇ) firewood: He goes into the forest to bring back firewood.

pamirkalas sing. (3ᵇ) △ holy pamirkalas blessed water in a vessel: You go into the church to the holy water vessel.

palė|is(ti), -džia, -dė: 1. to fry a beaten egg, let it loose (of an egg): I fried three eggs in butter and served them. 2. to give off, release: The cherries release all their color into that liquid.

paleistūvas (2) rascal: Those children are always little rascals.

palengvytė slowly: You need to eat slowly; rushing is unhealthy. That’s how he chews for a long time: slowly, slowly.

palėpis (1) loft: Pack the lofts well so that more grain will fit. I filled one loft.

pamėsti, pamėta, pamėtė to lay down unseen, secretly (of an egg): The cuckoo doesn’t hatch its own young either: it lays them beside the road.

pasi(m)ilž|ti, pasimėlžia, -o to milk oneself: By the time I got back, I had milked the cows.

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paneig|ti, -ia, pāneigė to deny, refute: He danced so high before the wedding, how he denied me.

paniur|gzti, -zgia, paniurzgė to hum softly: Another time I remember and hum some song.

panerg|lenti, -ėna, -ėno to pick at, nibble: I only picked at them and didn’t eat such food with onions.

panėšti, panėša, panėšė to endure, bear: He tolerates cold better than heat.

papiāu|ti, -na, papiāvė to press down, weigh down: She is a poor little woman weighed down by troubles.

pāpykis (1) anger: The cow gets such a fit of anger that it even charges at me: I can’t deal with it at all—it attacks.

par prep. (cf. Latvian par) 1. across: The cat runs across the yard. 2. about: They began talking about the sweets, where you would sleep. 3. adv. about: You can’t gather more than about six or seven liters of blueberries.

parblizg|ėti, parblizga, -jo to come back shining: My horse comes back shining, shining—it’s a trotter.

pargalvinis noun (2), a shepherd boys’ game in which a knife is thrown from the teeth over the head so that it sticks into the ground △ pargalvinį leisti to play the game of pargalvinis: Once I played pargalvinis, and the knife stuck into the back of my head: blood was running, and I got frightened.

paryd|yti, -o, -ė to feed, give a meal: The child needs to be fed. The špōko children have been fed for a long time already.

par|kratyti, -krato, -kratė to feel thoroughly by touch: The illness really shook us up: of the eight of us, only two were left.

paršvei|sti, -čia, -tė to throw over: She threw the pot over the roof into the nettles.

partyv|is, -ė noun (2), party member: He is such a party member, a very upright man.

paržodis (1) proverb: That is already our region’s proverb.

partik|ti, partinka, -o to have more than enough: They live in plenty, have everything, and don’t know what they want.

pa|sakyti, -sāko, -sākė △ pasakyti kaip aguonos grūdą to tell everything, tell in detail: Ask her, and she’ll tell you everything down to the smallest detail.

pasikišti, pasikiša, pasikišė to turn up unexpectedly, to happen along: She arranged to give two thousand, but that one turned up — he gives two and a half thousand.

pasi|laižyti, laižo, -laižė to taste, to make a mess of the food put on one’s plate: He ate a little, didn’t eat, licked at it, and left it.

pasinard|in|ti, -a, -o to get bogged down: The tractor has sunk deep into the ground; how will it ever climb that uphill slope?

pasipūmpin|ti, -a, -o to pump oneself some water: Pump yourself some water, if you can’t manage it any other way.

pasisūkti, pasisuka, pasisukė to turn up: She has some suitors: whichever one happens along is a good one.

paskaṃbin|ti, -a, -o to tap, to examine someone’s health by listening to their chest: They’re taking my brother away; they tap his heart.

paskrib|ti, paskriṃba, -o to die (colloquial): The old man died, and the old woman comes to the grave.

paskū afterwards: They bring them bread or whatever else they happen to have, and afterwards they drink.

pasmakr|uoti, -úoja, -āvo to fasten under the neck: Fasten the halter under the cow’s chin so it doesn’t slip off its head.

pasiutimas (2) △ pasiutimo mètas disorder, a mess: Neither the cows are fed nor the pigs tended—what a mess this is!

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paštir|as, -à (3ᵇ) hard-boiled: They don’t eat the hard-boiled egg—you always have to fry it in butter.

pastūrlakos plural (1) poor grain, tailings: Where do those pastūrlakos, the second-grade grain, go from here? Pastūrlakos are for the pigs, for the livestock.

pašarnykas (1) feeder: He was our feeder.

pašoninis noun (2) mattress: She spreads out the sheet and lies down on one of the mattresses.

pašpóg|ti, -sta, -o to become weak, grow thin: Now I can see that he’s so emaciated after that illness.

pašvytur|iuoti, -iuoja, -iavo to flash a light, shine a light (usually with a vehicle’s headlights): He flashed his headlights for a while, turned around, and drove away.

pa|taisýti, -táiso, -táisé to butcher, prepare for a meal: Now the calf has been butchered in such heat, so who will eat it?

patró|kšti, -kšta, -ško to become thirsty: He was very thirsty, so he drank a lot.

paveizdė|ti, pãveizda, -jo to glance, look: An owl sometimes looks with its own eyes.

pavilgas singular (1) thick sauce, gravy: All the gravy for the potatoes is that mash made from garsvỹčiai.

pečlind|à (3ᵇ) ovenbird, a tiny yellow bird that nests near alder groves; it makes a domed nest from moss: The finches dance with the pečlindos, the hares with the foxes, the wolves with the bears diminutive -ùitis (1) young of the ovenbird: We found a pečlindūtis—a tiny thing, as small as the tip of a finger.

pekšdėnė (2) oven cover: Our pekšdėnė burned completely; it had already grown old. The oven is covered with a pekšdėnė when the bread is baked. △ It sounds like pekšdėnė.

pėlūs plural (4) chaff: Pigs like to eat flax chaff. What lovely flax chaff: the pigs eat it very well—there are still some flaxseeds left in it.

pėmpė (1) male sexual organ: Such a big child, and he’s showing his penis. That little boy’s penis can be seen. pėmpiūtis (1) lapwing chick: The shepherd boys used to catch lapwing chicks: they would enjoy them for a while and let them go. While you hold a lapwing chick in your hands, the lapwing flies overhead and cries.

pérniai last year: Last year the elder and the old man were sick all winter. △ The priest used to travel last year, but this year the tracks are plain to see (the field has been ploughed with furrows).

pešiõ|ti, -ja, -jo to pluck, tear out: From the age of fourteen I went to work as a hired girl: to tend pigs, fire up the oven, and pluck feathers.

to|spoil, -s, spoiled to damage: Don’t spoil it; the heart grows dark with those medicines.

shepherd (3ᵃ) shepherd: There used to be a lot of shepherding about. When you’re grown up, you’re still very much a shepherd. In autumn the shepherds would always run around soaked, chasing after the pigs’ tails.

shepherding singular (2) being a shepherd △ from shepherdhood from childhood: She has been ill ever since her shepherding days.

shepherdishness (2) foolishness, shepherds’ pranks: He has come up with all sorts of shepherdish pranks.

meadow patch (1) small meadow: They ploughed up all the meadow patches; there’s nowhere left to graze the cow. He ploughed, made a mess with those harrows and couldn’t sow, and now such a meadow patch is standing there. small meadow patch (2): There are some small meadow patches left now: it was wet in early spring, so they couldn’t plough them.

bitter, -er (4) 1. strong, bitter: The mustard is terribly bitter—have a taste. Could those nasty peppers have fallen into your plate? 2. that stings: Nettles are very stinging; they won’t let you get near the sheep.

mischievous child (cf. Latvian pilot “to cry restlessly”) (2) rascal: He’s a real rascal: he broke the window.

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mischief (cf. mischievous child) singular (2) mischief: He’s full of mischief: he went and smashed a plate.

full moon singular (1) full moon: When you sow peas, don’t sow at the new moon; if you happen to sow at the full moon, they say the peas bloom all the way through.

money (3ᵇ) money: You can’t buy health with money.

bought, -en adjective (2) not homemade: We ourselves used to spin so much; who wore those store-bought things!

front cart wheels plural (1) front part of a cart: The cart’s front wheels broke.

to buzz, -es, -ed to hum, roar: The radio is buzzing; I can’t listen anymore—it’s making your head spin.

to act as a matchmaker, -es, -ed to arrange matches, propose: They started proposing a girl from the Pakruojis parish to me.

matchmaking (2) matchmaking: The parents are always busy matchmaking. Matchmaking—that’s my horse: it earns its keep.

flat, -er (cf. Latvian plakans “flat, shallow”) (3ᵇ) flat: The roaches are flat, while the burbot are fine, thick, and not flat.

plaukúot|as, -a (1) △ plaukúota pabieda horse and cart: I arrived in a horse-drawn cart.

pleikà (2) our rubber flyswatter on a wooden handle: They swat flies with the pleikà.

plepė|ti, plėpa, -jo to bubble, boil vigorously (of a thick dish): The porridge bubbles and boils until a crust forms.

plėrpaičia noun (1) someone who announces her presence with loud laughter, someone frivolous: Such frivolous women, you see, walk around looking for men.

plėš|ti, -ia, -ė to pull out, tear: Well, when she pulls flax, she is a vigorous puller. She strips the nuts with all their leaves.

plikakàkl|is, -ė adjective (2) of a breed with bare necks, not covered with feathers: There used to be naked-necked hens: the whole neck was bare, only the crop was feathered.

pliupšė|ti, pliùpsia, -jo △ pliupšėti dykojė vietojė to gossip falsely, without cause: I admonish those women when they start gossiping idly. Is it right to gossip idly? Look at what you yourselves are doing!

pló|ti, -ja, -jo to beat, thrash, give: I can see already: they keep beating only me—soon they’ll hit me on the head too.

plūk|ti, -ia, -ė to beat, pound: Now they beat flax with machines.

pluš|tis, -iasi, -ėsi to work hard: And that little woman is still working hard, laboring until she’s sweating.

po (with the accusative): After that war they divided the land. I have already said my prayers (prayed).

pódinai (1) plural (cf. Latvian pāde ‘the godfather, the godmother’, pādēns ‘the godson’) godparents: He has godparents. They gave the godparents a ride and gifts.

pómpis (2) pump: Go to the pump and pump yourself some water.

pópieriai plural (1) documents: He looked through all the documents and left.

prádantė (1) a natural gap between the teeth: I find that person handsome if he has a large gap between his front teeth, if his teeth are sparse.

pradėniu every other day: If I take the milk every other day, it amounts to half a workday for him.

to perish, -ishes, -ished to disappear, be lost, perish: We were very lost in the cards game.

pretext (2) obstacle, fabricated excuse: They would not even come to our well to drink: every man had a pretext—whether he would be found drinking, whether he would be invited, or whether he would get some beer too.

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nickname (1) nickname: You can no longer give him a nickname; you won’t be able to call him by one anymore—he’ll say, “Don’t you know my surname?”

to clear away, -clears, -cleared to dig out, clear off: The householder got up in the morning and cleared the paths.

to dry out, -ies, -ied to dry out: Those clothes may still dry by evening.

to get established, gets established, got established △ to make a living to settle in, make a living: In two years you could have made a living.

criminal, - (1) offender: His father was a criminal.

to establish oneself, establishes oneself, established oneself to make a living: I married young; my husband was a good man, and we soon got established. △ To live like a goat and die like a goat.

to miscalculate, -ates, -ated (cf. Latvian mūldēt, mūldināt) to be mistaken, miscalculate: It seemed to me that it was Wednesday, but perhaps I miscalculated. One mustn’t miscalculate; one must look carefully.

to split open, splits open, split open to break through: He keeps walking and falling, walking and falling; I’m afraid he might split his head open.

to ruin, -ruins, -ruined to waste away, bring to ruin: And he wasted away there.

to drink away, -drinks away, -drank away to drink away, squander on drinking: He drank away his property with the girls, and it was auctioned off.

to become unruly, -ies, -ied to get out of hand: Well, the old man has become completely unruly now: just look how much milk he spilled. They were both very unruly: each one was just like that, and so was the other.

to disperse, -es, -ed to scatter, disperse: Perhaps the wind will disperse those clouds a little.

to open, -s, -ed to open one’s eyes: He can’t see anymore: he opens his eyes a little and then closes them again.

to turn down, -s, -ed to quieten: Turn the music down a bit!

add, adds, -ed close (in a riddle): △ If it adds, there is less; if it takes away, there is more (closing and opening shutters).

front (cf. Latvian priekšā) (1) front part: Where there is nothing here: you can recognize [someone] from the front, not just from behind.

front, - (cf. priekšis) (2) front: One of my front teeth fell out.

front of the stove (1) the part of a stove facing forward: The front of the stove has burned through badly.

urinary retention (1) retention of urine, a disease of this kind: Father died of urinary retention: he could not urinate.

provide, provides, -ed arrange, provide for: He provided her with a child.

be born, is born, was born give birth: A little daughter was born to them.

nature, - (1) birth: God forbid such a birth—he is blameless in every way.

cause (2) reason, matter: He has plenty of reasons: by the time he gets back (crosses over) through the garden and evening comes, he chats here and there. He had a good reason to go.

remain, remains, -ed 1. be left over (in large quantities): What remained of the carts—there is nowhere to put it. 2. make: The child does not know how to plow, and made a lot for the berry picking.

become attached, -s, -ed grow fond of, sympathize with: That (Soviet) government did not yet exist, but Kārolis Pōzela was already attached to you.

tying-on beam (1) material to which the beginning and end of the weaving threads are attached: They tie the warp onto the tying-on beam when they begin weaving and when they finish. The tying-on beam is made of tow.

eat one's fill, -s, -ed eat one's fill: The goslings ate their fill, up to their necks.

find, finds, found find, discover: I chopped everything up, and yet you still find something to chop.

wear oneself out, -s, -ed tire oneself out: I wore myself out well: I hauled hay into the stacks.

5. Leksikos tyrinėjimai

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to attach oneself, -s, -ed put on, acquire: You can’t afford to get a new dress: there’s no money, so she buys an old one.

prisikant|yti, -ija, -ijo hybrid (from Slavic) ingratiate oneself, make oneself endearing: He wanted to ingratiate himself with her.

prisikrenkė|ti, -ja, -jo (cf. krenkis) worry oneself sick: How I worried myself sick over you, since you’re so restless.

prisiperėdi|ti, -a, -o hatch a large brood: Those sparrows have hatched a great many young.

prisi|prašyti, -prašo, -prašė win over, ingratiate oneself: Only the mistress wins the cow over; it won’t take to a stranger.

pris išavin|ti, -a, -o make one’s own: A relative attached himself to them and stayed to live with them.

prisisiėk|ti, -ia, -ė help: And we help him when he needs a hand with something.

prisertì, prìseria, prìšėrė (cf. šerti) △ prišėru jājų fill the lofts to capacity: The loft is packed full; nothing more can be crammed into it.

pritàtinti, -a, -o beat up: Wait until he comes and gives you a good beating. Be careful they don’t beat you up!

pučkà (2) (from Slavic) blunt end of an egg: The blunt end of the lapwing’s and peewit’s egg is very speckled.

pundūlė (cf. Latvian puncis ‘a kind of clay vessel’, Estonian punts ‘thick-bellied’) (2) clay pot wrapped in birch bark: The pundūlė is wide in the middle, and its neck is narrow. The pundūlė is made of clay and wrapped in birch bark. We stuffed a full pundūlė with feathers. The pundūlė used to be placed beneath the millstones.

pūntagálvis (1) bullhead: Bullheads swim underwater: their heads are thick and their tails not so slender.

pūodas (1) △ davatkų pūodas a very devout woman: My mother is a real religious zealot.

pūodkelė (1) rag for taking a hot pot off the stove, dirty handkerchief: You’ve grabbed such a pūodkelė and are still carrying it around to wipe things with.

pūravietė (1) an old-fashioned small plot, sown with a centner of seed, for a shepherd or farmhand to sow: You can sow plenty of flax in half a pūravietė, too. They set aside a pūravietė for the farmhand. One dessiatina contains four pūravietės.

pūrēntis, pūrēnasi, pūrēnosi move, quiver: Those papers are fluttering, and the sparrows aren’t going near the cherries. △ pūrēntis terp žēmių bathe in the sand: Before rain, hens often dust-bathe in the sand.

purpsē|ti, pūrpsia, -jo to crackle, creak: My hands crackle between them, they hurt a lot.

pūrti pūrti: That little branch goes pūrti pūrti: they are joking, while Mother is biting those bees.

pūšbackis barrel, (1) small cask: They brought a pūšbackis of herring; when it’s being opened, how delicious!

pusbernēkas (2) half-grown lad, a 14–17-year-old hired hand, archaic: They hired that pusbernēkas to carry milk.

pusiáuryčiai plural (1) a meal before breakfast: The hostess has already eaten her pusiáuryčiai, so now she doesn’t want to eat so soon. In the old days they used to give a slice of bread for pusiáuryčiai, and it was so tasty.

pūsgegutuītis (1) adolescent cuckoo: Its tail is long now, and it’s already coming out on the roof—by then it was such a pūsgegutuītis.

pūsrakis (1) halfway point in the time from setting eggs to hatch until they hatch: The eggs are already at the pūsrakis stage; I’ll go check whether they’re covered.

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pūsras (1) wood rot: The old man burns pūsras there: it only smolders, smoke rises. Pūsras from a willow stump. Strike the pūsras, and it crumbles.

pūšti, pūčia, pūtė to vomit: I can’t travel: I’m about to vomit, and that’s enough—it keeps pulling and pulling.

△ pūsti sāvo dūdą to do things one’s own way, as one pleases: Once the daughter-in-law arrived, everyone blew their own horn.

putō|ti, -ja, -jo to melt, turn into foam: The snow is already melting; the fields are foaming. Bubbles form on the water—the snow is foaming.

putrà (2) △ for truth, not for porridge for ideals, rather than material self-interest: For truth, not porridge: one stands up for another.

R

rāgas (4) handle: That bicycle can no longer turn the handlebars.

raguōlis (2) round loaf: You can see, ma'am, what a raguōlis made of sifted flour looks like: the oven didn't bake it well. The oven baked it well—oh, what a fine raguōlis!

rānga (1) (cf.? Latvian ruoga ‘the rutting season’) celebration, gathering: My uncle went to a big rānga—to a meeting of deputies.

rankà (2) blow with the hand: A man's hand leaves a mark on a man: it hurts more—there's no need to fight.

rāštis, rāndasi, rā do si to appear: In the life of a beetle, after all, they come from that same nest. All kinds of technology arise in nature.

rašyti, rāšo, rāšē to knit patterned designs: She knits gloves beautifully—well, she ought to knit some for her!

raudonīkė (2) red mushroom: The red mushroom is straight and tall, very beautiful: the stem is white, and the cap is red.

rāugalas (3ᵃ) fermented liquid made from rye flour, archaic. They used to eat rāugalas with bread. The rāugalas was tasty and thick, but not so much that it made your jaws ache: just enough to drink. They fermented the rāugalas; they even beat it with a pestle—it was so tasty.

rauklāzolē (1) yarrow: I drank yarrow tea, and it settled my stomach. Yarrow leaves are small; it blooms white.

redēstas (2) (from Polish) rosehip: Well, redēstas are beautiful: they smell lovely and bloom red. Redēstas berries are good for the teeth. Worms attack redēstas. Those redēstas are truly beautiful, but they have thorns (spines).

rētumais (cf. Latvian rētumiem) occasionally: All my clothes are homemade, all of them, and only occasionally do I put on something store-bought.

rý|yti, -o, -ē to feed, to rear: We sat down together and watched the starlings feed the little cuckoo. Because those parents fed those worms to the children.

rýkštē (1) loom reed for separating the warp threads: The rýkštēs hold those threads apart. Rýkštēs are very necessary for weaving. Put the rýkštēs into the heddle, and then thread them through the reed!

ristis, ritasi, ritōsi △ ristīs iš klasēs į klasę to advance to a higher grade: Every year they move up from one grade to the next.

ritulýs (3ᵇ) bolt of cloth: When I was getting married, I brought five bolts of cloth, each ten ells long.

to wander dialectal: I wandered home in four hours.

to shine, -s, -ed to illuminate: The dew grows tiny leaves; the sun shines bright little flowers dialectal.

stubble (1) stubble field: In summer they mowed it for such a long time—such long stubble.

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fermentation tub noun (1) small tub for fermenting beet soup: My fermentation tub has dried out completely; there's nothing left.

ridged, -a (1) uneven, grooved: The mushroom is ridged underneath,

to get ready, -s, -ed to feed oneself, get ready, get dressed: I'll go get ready—it's already evening.

preparation (4) preparations, evening household chores: They kept the preparations until they arrived. You don't waste any time; there's so little work to do, so few chores: milk the cow, and that's all. -ėlė (2): I'll go see to the evening chores.

rūplis (2) a kind of birch: Rūplis birches are very strong. You can't split rūplis wood: it's very hard. Rūplis birches are more common in the valleys, while the ones on the hills are white birches. The leaves of the rūplis birch are rather small. When you see a birch with drooping branches, know that it's a rūplis.

S

candy (2) a piece of candy: We took all the candies out of the guests’ pockets.

lettuce (2) lettuce: The lettuce seedlings have already sprouted, but the cucumbers are still afraid to emerge from the ground.

grist singular (1) ground grain: The men ground the grist. They ground a day’s worth of grist. The men would grind one measure of grist by dusk.

strap (1) a three-strand leather strap for fastening harnesses: I’ll lash you with the strap, just you keep urging me on. The collars are fastened with a strap. The children can no longer manage to put the strap together. The strap fastens the harness.

sámbarius (1) a feast for shepherd boys and farmhands at Pentecost, archaic. At Pentecost the shepherd boys swing their sámbarius and eat and drink; it is a good time for the shepherds then. The shepherds agreed to hold a sámbarius. The mistress prepares a sámbarius for the shepherds (for the shepherd boy), and I feel like going to join them. At Pentecost the farmhands drink sámbarius after buying a small keg of beer from the farmer. They drink sámbarius in the woods and give the herdsman a drink so he will not drive them out of the woods to pasture.

daydreams (cf. 1a. sapnis) (4) a dream, an idle thought: She is full of daydreams: she fancies all sorts of farmhands.

sun (1) △ to be “at the sun on the field ridge” the time when a person’s shadow coincides with the line of the field ridge. If the ridge runs east to west, this occurs in the morning at about 8 o’clock and in the evening at about 6 (from opposite sides); if it runs south to north, it occurs at noon: The sun is already at the ridge; we’ll drive the pigs home now; men, let’s get moving!

saùs|as, -à (4) △ to remain without milk to be without milk, without a covered vessel: Those funds are scarce (few), and we, those children, remained without milk.

hoodlum (from Russian) (2) member of a bad crowd: The hoodlums get up to hooliganism: they gathered and had a fight.

homestead (1) homestead: His homestead was very beautiful.

dogwood: Dogwoods are not thick (stout). Toss a dogwood branch into the water—it sinks. Dogwood is very hard; spokes are made from it.

skirt (from Russian) (2) skirt: They did not wear such long skirts: their legs could be seen.

old man (addressing a man): Aren’t you ashamed, old man, to be going away for the whole summer?

drive|away, -s, -d to drive, chase: We are driving him out of the village.

old woman (2) grandmother: She was still a strong old woman.

last quarter singular (1) waning moon: It is better to slaughter a pig during the last quarter: the meat keeps better and does not spoil.

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serẽntis (from Slavic) (2) carnation: The petals of the carnation blossom are as smooth as velvet. Carnations bloom yellow, not very beautifully.

siaũ|sti, -čia, -tė to strike: Sometimes, when you go to fetch the cow, (to drive it up), it strikes with its horns.

siekavietė (1) a measured plot of land allotted to a farmhand or hired laborer for a year’s work (about 20 ares), enough to sow a siek of grain, obsolete: A siekavietė used to be twenty ares. A farmhand cultivates the siekavietė well, and good flax grows. He sowed barley in the siekavietė.

siekšnis (1) spun yarn: When my mother taught me to spin, she said: “Look, spin the siekšnis well.” When you spin, it is a siekšnis; when you finish spinning it, it becomes thread.

sylė (from Slavic) (4) strength: △ An old man, bent-backed and humpbacked, rich in strength: what a hundred horses cannot carry, he bears on his back (an ant).

silkuitė (1) sprat, little herring: I had to bring back some, those tiny silkuitės.

siratuītis hybrid (from Slavic) (1) orphan: A good mother: she looked after the siratuīčius.

sirbėlė (1) leech: A leech stands in the water and sucks onto your leg. I’m afraid of leeches when I go swimming (to bathe). I caught a leech.

sytas (from Slavic) (2) a table-sized sieve for sifting grain, suspended by ropes, obsolete: They hang that sytas from ropes and sift the grain. It has to be sifted through the sytas, and then winnowed.

siūsti, siūta, siūto △ to be of a sewn-up disposition to be capricious: He is very capricious: he got angry and went to bed without supper.

skaudėjimas (1) pain: Pains are moving about in the abdomen.

skerdūnas (2) someone slaughtered, bloodied: They brought him home like some slaughtered animal.

skérskampis (1) a broad triangular slice cut crosswise from a loaf of bread, with both top and bottom crust: Cut the child a skérskampis of bread; give him one that isn’t so small.

skéršplautis (1) part of a cart into which the side stakes are fitted: The skéršplautis broke; we need to make a new one, as the cart can’t be driven. A hole is drilled in the skéršplautis. The rear skéršplautis.

skérštvorė (1) a fence whose rails are nailed crosswise: There is a skérštvorė in the field, where the chickens are penned in; it is made of crosswise wooden rails.

skolinỹkas (2) debtor: She got it from a debtor: she had three hundred in her hand.

poor 1. in a stingy manner: It’s stingy-hearted to honor such an old man. 2. little: You have little money.

secretive person (2) secretive person: He was so secretive; he wouldn’t tell anyone anything.

slaugýtis, slaugósi, slaugési to fidget, turn about: The children kept fidgeting around the windows but did not go into the house.

slėgutis (2) nightmare: A nightmare pressed down on me during her wedding celebration.

slėnksnis (2) threshold: The child came up to the threshold and is crying. △ Don’t sit on the threshold—the dogs will bite. slėnksnėlis (2): She crawled into the little room through the small threshold.

slidė (2) skate, plow part, the share that runs along the furrow: The plow part broke off; I can’t plow anymore. It needs to be taken to the forge to be repaired.

smaigalis (1) pointed end: Hold the pointed end upward—there used to be such a great big fellow with eggs. If you’ve pierced the pointed end, turn the other end toward you.

smakiūkas (2) hybrid (from Polish) lavender: The lavender wilts when you press it. Lavender blooms for a long time, until autumn: the tops dry up, and then it puts out flowers again from below.

smalstýbė singular (1) desire, craving: Such a cursed craving for that beer: he drinks until he closes his eyes (falls asleep).

smėgčiai plural (2) an old-fashioned knife game: △ We’ll go play knife-twirling. When we were shepherd boys, we used to play knife-twirling: you unfold the knife and let it go with two fingers so that it sticks into the ground.

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smèrčium (from Sl.) fatally: He fell from the cart and killed himself outright.

sodynėlis hybrid (from Sl.) (2) small container: Wash that little container for putting the berries in.

spaiglis (2) thorn, spine: The buckthorn is full of thorns: it pricks, oh, how it pricks. The nettles have thorns: such tiny ones, but they prick. Gooseberries have thorns; you can’t get near them—they tear your hands up.

spaigliúot|as, -a (1) thorny, spiny: The thistle is very thorny: you can’t take it in your hands.

spárd|ytis, -osi, -ėsi to rumble (of thunder): The thunder’s rumbling—he’s stoking the fire; he wants the house to catch fire!

spèk|áuti, -áuja, -ávo to guess: We began guessing surnames, trying to figure out whom they would let go home.

spiáutuvas (1) spittoon: The floor is full of spittoons. What horrible spittoons—they make you want to vomit. The spittoons began to fill with blood.

spinduolis (2) ray: The sun’s rays make a rainbow.

sprágšė (cf.? Latvian spradzene ‘a kind of strawberry’) (2) strawberry: The strawberries grow large. We boiled strawberries for the winter. I really like strawberry jam.

spręsti, sprendžia, sprendė to consider, discuss: Let’s decide whether that cloth will be well warped. Let’s discuss how to weave that cloth: whether to weave it in an eight-shaft pattern or not.

sprogtinė singular (2) the last one, a weakling: Well, now that horse is at its last gasp: it walks on soft bread.

spróklena noun (1) someone who is emaciated, withered, dried up: “Kàc kàc kàc”—look, that’s what they call that dried-up creature.

spog|úoti, -úoja, -ávo to bubble up: The water is beginning to bubble; it will boil any moment.

spūr|is, -ė adjective (2) having shaggy, frayed growth: The goose’s shaggy feathers dangle. Shaggy asters. Shaggy dahlias.

stabulė (3^b) hub: At Jōnas’s place the hub used to burn at night. They light the hub while sitting around and singing.

stačiai simply, as it were, like: He brings back nothing but horse meat.

stainia (dial.) (4) horse stable: △ Four stallions are standing in the stable, and a fifth is running around it (riddle).

stàkt: He shoots up from the haystack and shoots a hare.

stankėlis (2) (cf. Latvian stankis ‘ein Holzgefäss’) a wooden, straight-sided barrel: They pour the strained milk into the little barrel. In the old days, they kept the fermenting mixture in a barrel.

starkūitis (cf. Latvian stārka, starkis, starkis) a young stork: Oh, the young storks are no longer small; they have already poked their little heads out of the nest!

stiebūn|is, -ė (2) △ stiebūniai lettuces, a kind of lettuce: Stiebūniai lettuces quickly turn bitter, whereas the head lettuces stay tender, young, and not bitter for longer.

strèkis (cf.? Latvian strākis) (1) side stack: There are many large side stacks, and much grain. Climb onto the stack and tread it down. They do not stack the sheaves in a side stack; they wait for the end of autumn, in case the mice eat them.

su (with the genitive) You need to measure yourself against you.

su|arkýti, -árko, -árkė to ruin: And so she ruined the life of such a girl, while she herself was twisted like Death.

sudirb|ti, -a, -o to plow, cultivate: He cultivated the garden plots for everyone.

su|draskýti, -drásko, -dráske to eat up: The mistress eats up a pancake or so in the kitchen.

sugub|úoti, -úoja, -ávo to gather into shocks or piles: They gather the rye into shocks. They managed to pile the hay before the rain; now that it is raining, he has nothing to worry about.

sukirmýdin|ti, -a, -o to rot: Well, this year those rains will make everything rot.

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sukir|myti, -ija, -ijo to become worm-eaten, to rot: They say silk does not become worm-eaten for a long time. Throw it into the corner and all the grass will become worm-eaten.

suknėr|pti, -ia, suknerpė to make, to cobble together: He comes home from work and again wants to cobble something together.

sukranė|ti, -ja, -jo (cf. nukranėti) to grow old: He is already completely unable to do anything: he has grown old, can no longer walk, and is so unpleasant.

sukrigul|iuoti, -iuoja, -iavo (cf. krigulis) to sew badly: You’ve sewn it badly here: you’ve sewn it all crooked—how could that be!

sukri|sti, sukri̇̀nta, -to to lie down together: They lay down in one bed.

sūk|ti, -a, -ė to shove: He shoves his fist under his nose. △ vėtrai sūkti a storm is brewing: Such a storm is brewing; it is lifting the roofs.

su|laistyti, -lȧ́isto, -laistė to seal, to patch over: The stove needs patching: the bottom is very worn through. I patched the stove so there would be no little holes and the fire wouldn’t escape.

sulig according to, in proportion to: Compared with my age, you’re only a girl, still such an adolescent.

sumačio|ti, -ja, -jo to shorten by tying or knotting: Because the whip used to be too long, she shortens it by tying it.

sumetė|jas, -a (1) perceptive, quick-witted: He’s not much of a thinker: he wanders about the world, and that’s about it.

sunkà (2) juice: The juice from those raspberries will be rather thick. Drink the juice—it’ll be stronger.

sūpuoklės (1) swing: The swing used to be hung beside the cowshed.

susig|auti, -auna, -avo to catch: The hens are lame and sore, and won’t let themselves be caught.

susigrėž|ti, -ia, susigrėžė to turn around, to turn back: They arrived, threw down their sacks, turned around, and were gone. He turned around and drove away.

sugrū|sti, -da, -do to huddle up, to curl up: And I hurt myself like that: I curled my hands up so tightly that I couldn’t bring anything to my mouth.

susikrenkė|ti, -ja, -jo (cf. krenkis) to become worried: Why are you so worried—is one of the children sick?

susikvipin|ti, -a, -o to perfume oneself: They’ll make fun of me, they’ll say: the grandmother has perfumed herself.

susiliežiu|uoti, -uoja, -avo to gossip about one another: They complained about each other, gossiped—and are no longer friends.

susilk|iuoti, -iuoja, -iavo to smear with herring fat: I’m watching so I don’t get herring fat on your glass.

susimėsti, susimeta, susimetė to become friends, live together intimately: We weren’t living together; we weren’t lovers.

susisūkti, susisuka, susisukė to wrinkle, crumple: His cheeks are all wrinkled: nothing is left of that old man.

susil|taisyti, -taiso, -taisė to comb one’s hair: What’s gotten into you, looking so fancy: you’ve done your hair like that and walk around with your nose in the air.

susivėrkti, -ia, susiverkę to burst into tears: She burst into tears and ran out.

sušerti, sušeria, sušėrė (cf. šerti) to pile up: Pile the wet flax between the drying racks—it’ll rot.

sušliauk|ti, -ia, sušliaukė to sweep together, push into a heap: She’ll sweep the bits of straw into the corner and feed the horses.

su|šnekti, -šnėnka, -šneko to have a brief talk: He spoke briefly with the deputy.

sušpōg|ti, -sta, -o to become thin, waste away: Why are you so wasted away—are you ill?

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sutrāt|yti, -ija, -ijo to demolish, smash: A new building had been put up, and he smashed everything.

sutrāk|ti, -ia, -ė to drink up: We quickly drank up that beer.

sutvėrimas (2) appearance, build: In appearance, a person would be handsome, but otherwise he is not right.

s(u)varvė|ti, suvarva, -jo △ kąd tu suvarvėtum may you perish: May you perish—what a lot of trouble you’ve caused me!

sužaginiuōt|as, -a (1) arranged in sheaves: The clover is arranged in sheaves, standing stacked among the sheaves.

svaigulỹs (3^b) intoxicating drink: What can you do—it takes drink. Nothing gets done when people are drinking: poor and gentlemen alike, everyone drinks.

svėtīm|as, -à (3^b) passing by, merely flying past (of birds): The cranes are just passing through: they land and fly off again.

svietas (sl.) (1) people: What a small, worn-out lot of people there is nowadays!

sviltas singular (2) burnt remains: What is that smell of something burnt here?

Š

jackal (3^b) △ without a jackal without a lit torch, as many as you like, plenty: Without a jackal, some may appear who will not show the livestock.

little forked stick (2) a two-pronged stick: When they mow hay in summer, they tie a little forked stick to the scythe and its snath. A little forked stick is a two-pronged piece of wood.

beside △ put beside not to scold: Whether you say it straight out or put it aside—it is the same.

alongside beside: They are laid out alongside one another in his shop. They stand alongside one another.

warmth, heat, steam (3^b): Now there is heat itself. It is hard to milk in that heat: horseflies swarm terribly, and one cannot defend oneself. When there is little heat, they add more (when the sauna is not hot enough, they pour water onto the stones).

a tall-stemmed daisy (2) growing in flower gardens and blooming white or red: The tall-stemmed daisies bloom like chamomile, with leaves like carrots. They grow very large.

rowan (2) rowan tree: Rowan drives the devil out of the house.

housekeeping (2) running a household: When I got married, I did not take part in running the household.

ridge of a roof (1) roof ridge: We packed it right through—to the very ridge. Our roof ridge is raised.

he who lays out (cf. 1a. one who dries grain) (1) a person who spreads grain or flax on the drying racks in a drying barn, archaic: She was the one who laid it out: not everyone knew how to load the drying barn.

to lay out, lays out, laid out △ to load a drying barn (cf. 1a. to load a threshing barn) to load grain or flax onto racks for drying, archaic: The men load the drying barn. One must go and load the drying barn.

little straw (2) straw: It takes a little straw into its beak, then it picks up that earth and builds onto the nest.

straw end (1) end of a straw: The yard is strewn with straw ends.

this year this year: It keeps raining as if it would never stop: well, the grain harvest will be poor this year.

to spread, opens unfold: It will bloom soon; it is already opening.

tough, hardened (4) resilient, hardened: He is very tough: he never used to get sick; nothing harms him.

šil|tybė noun (1) warmth, heat: Such oppressive heat: you don’t feel like eating or doing anything. It’s terribly warm for sleeping.

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šilionas (from Russian) (2) joker, liar: Just you listen to those liars: he’ll draw you something, and you’ll believe it.

šimtin|is, -ė adjective (2) hundredth: He’s already well into his hundredth year.

šit|as, -à (4) this one: The mice will drive this cat out of the house: he’s so lazy.

šiurpos plural (1) shivers, chills: Shivers run through your whole body from those sour berries you ate in the dark.

šlepu šlepu šlept šlept: Squish, squish, through the mud in boots—I mean, it was very wet.

šoninis (2) △ leisti šoninį to play a certain knife game, in which the knife is thrown sideways so that it sticks into the ground: Playing the sideways-throwing game is easy. Throwing the knife sideways with the left hand is harder; at first you may not hit the mark—you might only hit it every third throw.

špuolia (cf. Latvian spuole, spūole) (1) bobbin: A bobbin, where the thread is wound. Wind the thread onto the bobbin.

štabinas (cf. Latvian stabans) (1) an inconsiderate person who pays no heed to others: She was such a beautiful girl, and she took up with such a lout, who treated her so badly! Those men are such oafs: they lie sprawled there while you do all the work.

šulnis (2) well: Don’t spit into the well, because after death you’ll have to drink the whole well dry.

šūtas (2) △ duoti šūto to give someone a dressing-down, scold: Her husband gives her a good telling-off over those galoshes.

švank|ūs, -ì (4) fast: A fast airplane: how many kilometers it covers in an hour. The wind is very brisk—it travels (runs) a long way. A hare is very fast: the dog can’t catch up—it runs swiftly.

švañkiai quickly, vigorously: Don’t let the horse go too fast.

švap|lỹs, -ė (4) lisping person: He was such a lisper: you couldn’t quite understand what he was saying.

šuvà, šunìes (4) △ šuo: šunį nudurti to be so stiff with dirt: She’s so dirty: you could stab a dog with her apron.

T

tãčkas (4) spot: Genỹs has spots like these. The girl’s face was freckled with brown spots. tačkelis (2): The lark’s eggs are blue with little spots; the nest is very speckled.

talkà (4) guests, helpers with drinking: There was a small gathering for Peter: a lot of beer was left over.

talkinỹkas (2) helper: These are helpers: they only pulled up the sticks but left the potatoes.

tamsėlėsn|is, -ė (4) darker: Give me the darker one of the Šūkiai.

tánka (1) tank: Five tanks were smashed. One tank has not yet exploded. A dead person was thrown out of the tank.

tarýtum seemingly, as if: They gathered some more at the farmstead, as it were.

ter̃p between: Between the clearings, strawberries grow most abundantly (cf. Latvian starp priedites, starp eglites).

tetìrvinas (1) black grouse: The black grouse used to bubble in the woods.

tėvỹnė (2) homeland, birthplace: Our homelands were nearby.

tėvinis (cf. Latvian tēviņš) (1) dad, father: Dad will give me a bicycle. Dad’s bicycle is very good.

tiek △ tiek ir tiek very much: That dog has a great deal of malice. The child has a great deal of mischief.

tiesùmas (2) △ pro tiesùmù straight, directly: If you go straight through, you come to that forest.

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tràkšt with a slide: From that knife, a sharp scrape back: by the time you bring it to your mouth, you’ve licked the knife clean, and that’s that.

tràkt: The eldest brother abruptly climbed into the cart.

trapn|ùs, -i (4) brittle: Those apple trees are very brittle; they break apart easily.

trašk|ùs, -i (4) talkative: She herself is so talkative. You are very talkative—it is so pleasant for me to listen.

traš|ùs, -i (4) luxuriant: Our garden has luxuriant potatoes.

tráuk|ti, -ia, -ė △ like plucked from the eye very similar: That child was like plucked from the eye—he looked very much like his father.

trėkštel|ėti, -ia, -ėjo crush, make a cracking sound: You had to crush that bug by stepping on it.

tri tri: The herdsman blows the horn, “tri tri,” and it’s time to get up.

triūbà (dial.) (2) horn: The shepherds sound the horn and drive the livestock home in the evening.

△ second horn call old. the herdsman’s second signal to gather the herd: The herdsman’s second horn call drives the livestock out of the cowshed into the village street. First horn call old. the herdsman’s first horn call in the morning: At the herdsman’s first horn call, the shepherds also have to get up.

trūk|ti, trūnka, -o not last: How quickly that beauty passes: here you see that old age has already come.

trup|ùs, -i (4) soft: You can still eat a soft thing, but if the bread has gone stale, then I can’t.

tukr|ùs, -i (4) sound, substantial, full: If only that girl were well-built, plump, but now she’s wan and so thin.

tūtė (2) aunt: Why are you shuffling along, auntie, barely lifting your feet as you walk—always shuffling, shuffling.

tvàkt snap: Last night a snap at my blouse: that rooster pinched it so hard.

tvértis, tvér iasi, tvėrėsi △ cannot contain oneself cannot sit still, is restless: He can’t sit still: he keeps dashing around at dances.

tykšó|ti, týkšo, -jo to splash about: There’s this kind of gravel pit, and the puddles are splashing about—it rained this year.

tvorinėlė adj. (2) fenced-in: I can manage a little field shed, and that same little fenced-in shed.

U

uk|ùs, -i (4) satiated: The honey is very satiating.

ùnaras (Sl.) pride, ambition: He goes on foot himself, but rides in a carriage with pride.

uodega (3ª) △ gauti į úodegą to get a beating: He got a good beating from her husband.

įmėgzti į úodegą to thrash, to give a beating: She laid him on the ground and gave him several lashes with a belt.

upókšnis (1) little stream: A small stream, but the water keeps flowing.

ùžantis (1) hearth: He sweeps the ashes into the hearth. The hearth is full of ashes.

užimti, užima, užėmė to digest: I can’t digest the butter; I feel unwell, unwell all day.

užkabavó|ti, -ia, -jo hybrid form: to court around (of girls): He keeps going after women, flirting with them, but is not looking to get married.

ùžkambaris (cf. užkambaris ‘hearth’ — Šeduva, kambarỹs ‘the dark end of a house for storing provisions’, kamburỹs ‘corner’, ùžkaboris ‘corner’) (1) nook: Put that box in that nook.

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to talk someone into it, talks someone into it, talked someone into it △ to talk up to gossip about: If you walk around with a girl, then marry her; otherwise, people will start gossiping about you.

to become inflamed, becomes inflamed, became inflamed to redden: Those legs became inflamed and swollen, turned red; then lie at the end of the bed with your legs raised.

to bake, bakes, baked to bake a little for guests: I baked some bread—you are no longer guests.

to spread out, spreads out, -ed to branch out, grow together: It is very beautiful when those wreaths spread out.

forked, -i (4) bent back, curved: The ends of those forks are very bent back: you can use one to pitch manure out of a cart.

to fly up and perch, flies up and perches, flew up and perched to fly up, alight: The hens flew up onto the gate and are cackling—it will rain.

attic crossbars plural (2) crossbars supporting the granary ceiling: I hung the sack on the crossbars. The crossbars extend across the whole granary. A rake and the heads of rakes are placed on the crossbars.

to survive, survives, survived to remain: What the world has let pass, and what it will let pass, will survive!

to carry and raise, -s, -ed to bear and bring up a child out of wedlock: Since you carried him, brought him into the world, you must raise him!

to drift over, drifts over, drifted over to be snowed over: The buses aren’t running: the roads are snowed over.

to attack, -pūola, -pūolė to catch: Throat disease (diphtheria) struck: in three weeks it strangled four people.

to swell, swells, swelled to become swollen, puff up: My eyes swell up too, and my chest feels very heavy when a bee stings me.

to order, orders, ordered to command: They ordered us to go and gather stones.

to begin, begins, began to start: The liquid is already starting to ferment.

to set, -džia, -dė to go down: The pigs haven’t been fed yet, but the sun has already set.

to ambush, -ja, -jo to attack: They had already ambushed them twice and taken their money. The women stood up for the foreman and pleaded.

užtvie|ksti, -skia, užtvieskė to heat up: The sun has scorched everything, and it will soon rain again—it will ruin the rye.

užuogana (1) a strip of plowed land, a field corner, a meadow: That lad doesn’t know how to plow and leaves such field corners. A great many of those field corners have grown over.

užuovė (1) shelter from the wind: Let’s go into the shelter, where the wind can’t reach us! What a good shelter: it’s warm, and we’re not shivering.

užvarė (1) an enclosed field area fenced with poles, where livestock are driven together: When the shepherds come home for dinner, they drive the livestock into that enclosure, and the cows lie down.

užveja (1) the third strand of a rope: Put another strand on top of the two strands of the cord—it’ll be very strong. They also put another strand on the reins.

V

vabuolė (2) (cf. Latvian vabuolis) beetle: Look what a beetle you’ve caught: one is pulling toward itself, the other toward itself.

vagystā (2) theft: The theft comes to light on its own.

vaidinuōklis (2) prankster: In the evenings, prankster devils would come and play ball.

vaik|ėsas (2) 1. young man: The young men got into a fight. 2. hired hand, archaic: Two hired hands had been employed. -esėlis (2) son, boy: That farmwife’s little boy drives my horse into the barn.

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vaikėšnykė (1) a woman who entices men: She is very much a vaikėšnykė, she really likes men.

vainikas (2) a flower: I’ll go into the garden to pick some dahlias. Dahlias are beautiful flowers. A shirt embroidered with flowers. I’ll pull up a flower. The flowers bloom profusely.

váľio △ leave váľio (cf. Latvian ielikt vaļā) to open, leave open: The cricket is chilled: it goes to sleep in the sitting room, but leaves the doors and windows of the house wide open.

vaľko|tis, -jasi, -josi to walk about, roam, loiter: Wander and wander through the forest, and—there’s nothing there.

vántlapis (1) a leaf of the broom plant: We used to make (dye) eggs with vántlapis: pale yellow—they used to be a beautiful color.

varlėlė (2) the two sticks of a tripod that players try to knock down during a certain game: When someone knocks down the varlėlė, they run to set it up again and strike it once more.

varniūtis (1) a young crow: The crow has already led its young out of the nest.

važ|iuoti, -iuoja, -iavo to learn, be able, manage to ride: By the time it dawned, I was already riding a bicycle (I had learned to ride by morning).

vedžio|ti, -ja, -jo to give birth, raise: The teeth got stronger when I started having children.

velniūkas (2) the devil (elsewhere, a witch): The velniūkas is chopping at the horse; the horse won’t move.

verdenėlė (2) a spring: The little spring does not freeze even in winter: the water keeps rising to the surface.

verpėtas (2) a whirlpool: In the depths (in the deep) a whirlpool spins: you can drown there.

vėrti, vėria, vėrė △ vėrti akim to gaze piercingly, alluringly: She gazes right into your eyes, and that’s enough.

vientul|is, -ė (1) (cf. Latvian vientulis) fatty, even: The burbot is the finest fish now: beautiful, thick, solid, not bony. I had a plump piglet.

vienūj|is, -ė (2) △ vienas vienūjis all alone: You live all alone.

vikas (2) vetch: They mowed down the green vetch. They gave the cow some vetch.

vyk|ti, -sta, -o to prosper, go well: This year my cucumbers aren’t doing well. A bad eye will see them—and the livestock won’t thrive.

virbė (cf. virbas) (2) a gathering of villagers to discuss common concerns, e.g....

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vog|onė (2) (from Slavic) a small wooden container with a lid for shepherds to take into the fields for a meal, obsolete: My mother used to put cream in that container. When I ran around herding the livestock, the butter would churn in that container. -onėlė hybrid form (2): For the shepherd, the housekeeper added a full container of food.

voverėlė (2) chanterelle: The chanterelles are yellow and beautiful.

Ž

žabangos plural (1) snares, traps: I’ll set snares for us: when they go, they’ll get caught.

žabelė (2) forked twig: The dogs—all the forked twigs and little trees—in a row.

žaburėlis (2) small twig: Bring some tiny twigs; we’ll get the fire going quickly.

žaibas (3) lightning: All the lightning bolts struck that post.

žaislas (4) game △ to play žaislų games: For so many years I haven’t played those games, and I don’t know anything anymore.

žaizdrė (2) flake, large spark: Sparks fly from the iron.

žālbaravykis (1) pine bolete: The underside of the pine bolete is blue; its cap is large and swollen.

žerp|ėlti, -jasi, -josi to die down: When the embers die down, the stones get very hot and turn red.

žiaunėlė (2) crack, split: The loaves of bread, you see, have split apart—just a few cracks.

žibė|ti, žiba, -jo to shine: At dawn, as soon as daylight began to shine, the flies swarmed us.

žiebsė|ti, žiebsia, -jo to twinkle: Close your eyes—do they sparkle when lightning flashes?

žieželka dialectal (1) spark: The sparks are flying, the iron is throwing them off!

žinoms naturally: When it’s already soggy, naturally, you can’t plow.

žiopsė|ti, žiōpsia, -jo to gape: Why do you gape so often, as if you’d swallowed something whole? He gaped and then died.

žirgūtis (2) alder cone: The worst hardship came in those days: they gathered alder cones and put them into the bread.

žiū look: Look how nicely it’s been mended here! Look how much I like beer with eggs and sour cream!

žiurkūitis (1) little rat: Six little rats fell out of the flour.

žmogėlis (2) man, himself: I’ll go to the man’s mound.

žmonelytė (1) little woman: A little woman is walking by, a tiny old woman across the yard.

žnāib|yti, -o, -ė 1. to pinch. We roll the dough into a sausage and pinch it into finger-thick pieces. 2. to stab, to pierce: A stitch of pain is stabbing me in the side.

žōdis △ ne už žōdžio to take something the wrong way: He’s so hot-tempered; if he takes something the wrong way, goodness—he’s fire and water.

žuvėlnykas (1) fishmonger, archaic: I worked for a fishmonger in town.

žvaigždė (2) star: The evening star has already risen. Not a star can be seen—it’s pitch-dark!

žvengalas (3ᵇ) one that neighs: △ The neigher neighed atop a tall mountain, iron head, hempen tail (a bell, in a riddle).

žvirbl|ūitis (1) little sparrow: Catching little sparrows is all part of a shepherd boy’s work. We used to weave a little trap from twigs and catch sparrows. The little sparrows fly into the trap and flutter their wings. -ėlis (2) a chain link swivel, so that the chain does not twist: The chain broke as far as the little link. The little swivel pulled out, and the chain twisted.

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VOCABULARY OF THE LITHUANIAN DIALECTS OF THE MŪŠA RIVER BASIN

Э. Й. ГРИНАВЯЦКЕНЕ

Abstract

The vocabulary presented in the article was recorded in 1960–1965 from people living in the Pakruojis District (within the quadrangle between the settlements of Pašvitinys—Žeimelis—Vaškai—Linkuva).

Here, as far as possible, only those dialect words are presented that are either entirely absent from the literary language or differ from its norm in form, word formation, accentuation, semantics, figurative meaning, or syntax. Also included are words which, in the author’s opinion, are associated in their usage with the territory of the dialects under study or with the territory of larger dialect units of which these dialects form a part.

The greater part of the vocabulary presented consists of words that are the most active element of conversational vocabulary—expressive verbs that denote actions and characterize them. The archaic vocabulary of the dialects under study is also revealed here: words denoting realia and objects associated with the population’s traditional way of life, customs, manners, and worldview, preserved in the speech (or even only in the memories) of the older generation. Some of the material presented is characterized by lexical-semantic and word-formation affinities with the related Latvian language, and especially with its neighboring dialects. This part of the vocabulary of the dialects under study is of considerable interest from an areal perspective, as it reflects the linguistic and cultural ties of these localities with their nearest neighbors. The vocabulary of the dialects of the Mūša River basin also includes some Slavic and Germanic borrowings, acquired in particular through Latvian.

The vocabulary of these dialects has, one might say, remained almost unstudied to this day, although individual items have accumulated and continue to accumulate in the card files of the Academic Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language and the Atlas of the Lithuanian Language, and are reflected to some extent in the eight published volumes of the “Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language” and in the anthology “Lithuanian Dialects.”

Dialect words are presented in alphabetical order and illustrated with one or more sentences.