заяц

Inherited from Old Ruthenian за́ѧцъ (zájacʹ), from Proto-Slavic *zajęcь, *zajьcь.

• IPA^(key): [ˈzajat͡s]

• Audio:

  (file)

за́яц • (zájac) m animal (genitive за́йца, nominative plural зайцы́, genitive plural зайцо́ў, female equivalent зайчы́ха, relational adjective за́йчы, diminutive за́йчык)

1. hare
   • 1937 [1719], Daniel Defoe, translated by Зяма Раманавіч Півавараў, edited by Janka Maŭr, Жыццё і дзіўныя небывалыя прыгоды Рабінзона Крузо [The life and astonishing adventures of Robinson Crusoe], Minsk: ДВБ, translation of Robinson Crusoe, page 120:

     Я нават не помніў, ці пералез я цераз загарадку па прыстаўной лесніцы, як заўсёды, ці увайшоў праз дзверы, гэта значыць, праз знадворны ход, выкапаны ў гары; я і на другі дзень не мог гэтага прыгадаць. Ніводзін заяц, ніводная ліса, ратуючыся ў вар'яцкім жаху ад сабак, не спяшаліся так схавацца ў сваім логаве, як я.

     Ja navat nje pómniŭ, ci pjeraljez ja cjeraz zaharadku pa prystaŭnój ljesnicy, jak zaŭsjódy, ci uvajšóŭ praz dzvjery, heta značycʹ, praz znadvórny xod, vykapany ŭ hary; ja i na druhi dzjenʹ nje moh hetaha pryhadacʹ. Nivódzin zajac, nivódnaja lisa, ratujučysja ŭ varʺjackim žaxu ad sabak, nje spjašalisja tak sxavacca ŭ svaim lóhavje, jak ja.

     [original: Whether I went over by the ladder, as first contrived, or went in at the hole in the rock, which I had called a door, I cannot remember; no, nor could I remember the next morning, for never frightened hare fled to cover, or fox to earth, with more terror of mind than I to this retreat.]

     Whether I went over the fence using the ladder, as always, or entered through the door—that is, the backdoor hole dug in the rock—I could not remember, even the next day. For never had a hare or fox, fleeing in mad terror from the dogs, hurried to hide in its den as much as I.

• Zhurawski, A. I., editor (1993), “заяцъ”, in Гістарычны слоўнік беларускай мовы [Historical Dictionary of the Belarusian Language] (in Belarusian), numbers 12 (зашкодный – злотницкий), Minsk: Navuka i tekhnika, →ISBN, page 9
• “заяц”, in Skarnik's Belarusian dictionary (in Belarusian), based on Kandrat Krapiva's Explanatory Dictionary of the Belarusian Language (1977-1984)
• “заяц” in Belarusian–Russian dictionaries and Belarusian dictionaries at slounik.org

Inherited from Old Slovak zajac, from Proto-Slavic *zajęcь. Cognates include Slovak zajac and Carpathian Rusyn за́яць (zájacʹ).

• IPA^(key): [ˈzajat͡s]
• Rhymes: -ajat͡s
• Hyphenation: за‧яц

заяц (zajac) m anim (diminutive заячок, related adjective заячи)

1. hare

• Medʹeši, H., Fejsa, M., Timko-Djitko, O. (2010) “заяц”, in Ramač, Ju., editor, Руско-сербски словнїк [Rusyn-Serbian Dictionary] (in Pannonian Rusyn), Novi Sad: Faculty of Philosophy

• за́яцъ (zájac) — Pre-reform orthography (1918)

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *zajęcь, *zajьcь.

Compare typologically Finnish jänis (“hare; stowaway”).

• IPA^(key): [ˈza(j)ɪt͡s]
• Hyphenation: за́‧яц

• Audio:

  (file)

за́яц • (zájac) m anim (genitive за́йца, nominative plural за́йцы, genitive plural за́йцев, feminine зайчи́ха, relational adjective за́ячий, diminutive за́инька or за́йчик or за́йка or за́я)

1. hare

   Synonym: косо́й m anim (kosój)

   • 1969, F. Kandel, A. Kurlyandsky, A. Khait, Ну, погоди!, spoken by Wolf:

     Ну за́яц, ну погоди́!

     Nu zájac, nu pogodí!

     Well, hare, just you wait!

2. (colloquial) one who uses public transportation without buying a ticket, fare dodger, stowaway

   Synonym: безбиле́тник m anim (bezbilétnik)

   е́хать за́йцем ― jéxatʹ zájcem ― to be a stowaway (literally, “to ride as a hare”)

   • 2009, V. Y. Kungurceva, Ведогони, или Новые похождения Вани Житного:

     Мо́жно бы́ло за́йцами е́хать на электри́чке или на авто́бусе, но опя́ть ведь пробле́ма гвозде́нья встава́ла!

     Móžno býlo zájcami jéxatʹ na elektríčke ili na avtóbuse, no opjátʹ vedʹ probléma gvozdénʹja vstavála!

     We could have taken the electric train or the bus as stowaways, but again the problem of nagging!

• Hares are much more common in Russia than rabbits; thus, за́яц (zájac) is used in Russian stories as the default, unmarked term for a lagomorph, where in English stories one would use rabbit or bunny.

• беля́к m anim (belják), руса́к m anim (rusák)

• мех f (mex)

Compounds:

• морско́й за́яц m anim (morskój zájac)
• From за́йчик (zájčik):
  • со́лнечный за́йчик m (sólnečnyj zájčik)
• From за́ячий (zájačij):
  • за́ячья губа́ f (zájačʹja gubá)
  • за́ячья капу́ста f (zájačʹja kapústa)

Proverbs

• за двумя́ за́йцами пого́нишься, ни одного́ не пойма́ешь (za dvumjá zájcami pogónišʹsja, ni odnovó ne pojmáješʹ)

Close related:

• зайчи́шка m anim (zajčíška)
• зайчо́нок m anim (zajčónok)

Probable PIE related

• ? жи́молость f (žímolostʹ)

• за́яц попрыга́ец m anim (zájac poprygájec)

• Vasmer, Max (1964–1973) “заяц”, in Oleg Trubachyov, transl., Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Progress
• Chernykh, P. Ja. (1999) “заяц”, in Историко-этимологический словарь русского языка [Historical-Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), 3rd edition, volume 1 (а – пантомима), Moscow: Russian Lang., →ISBN, page 318
• Shansky, N. M., editor (1975), “заяц”, in Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), volume 2, number 6 (З), Moscow: Moscow University Press, page 75
• Šanskij, N. M. (2004) “заяц”, in Školʹnyj etimologičeskij slovarʹ russkovo jazyka [School Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Moscow: Drofa
• Krylov, G. A. (2004) “заяц”, in Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), Saint Petersburg: Victory, →ISBN
• Tsyhanenko, H. P. (1989) “заяц”, in Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (in Russian), 2nd edition, Kyiv: Radjanska shkola, →ISBN, page 139
• Semjonov, A. V. (2003) “заяц”, in Этимологический словарь русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Russian Language] (Русский язык от А до Я) (in Russian), Moscow: Junves, →ISBN
• Shaposhnikov, A. K. (2010) “заяц”, in Этимологический словарь современного русского языка [Etymological Dictionary of the Contemporary Russian Language] (in Russian), volumes 1: (А – Начальство), Moscow: Flinta; Nauka, →ISBN, page 314

• Dal, Vladimir (1880–1882) “заяц”, in Толковый Словарь живаго великорускаго языка [Explanatory Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language] (in Russian), 2nd edition, Publication of the bookseller-typographer Wolf, M. O.