# all Slavic: adult



## Gavril

I've noticed that the Slavic languages have an interesting range of terms for "adult".

Most seem to include the word for "grow" (or a derivative thereof), but there are at least three different prefixes added to this stem:

_vz_-: Russian _vzroslyi_, Bulgarian _vŭzrasten_, Macedonian _vozrasen_ = ~"grown-up"
_od_-: Slovene _odrasel,_ BCS _odrastao_ = ~"grown-off"/"grown-away"
_do_-: Polish _dorosły_, Ukrainian _doroslij_, Belarusian _darosly_ = ~"grown-to"

(Czech and Slovak also appear to use _do_- in their words for "adult", but the verb stem to which it is prefixed is different.)

Are there any other patterns seen in Slavic words for "adult", or similar, that aren't listed above?

(For example, what about Sorbian etc.?)

Thanks


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## jasio

Gavril said:


> Are there any other patterns seen in Slavic words for "adult", or similar, that aren't listed above?


In Polish there is also another word, "pełnoletni", an adjective derived from 'full years'. It's a legal term referring to an 18+ years old person. Sometimes the two are juxtaposed to convey the meaning that someone is formally adult, but in fact still childish.


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## nimak

jasio said:


> In Polish there is also another word, "pełnoletni", an adjective derived from 'full years'. It's a legal term referring to an 18+ years old person.


Same in:
_Macedonian_ - *полнолетен* (polnóleten)
_Bulgarian_ - *пълнолетен* (pŭlnoléten)
_Serbian_ - *пунолетан* / *punoletan*
_Croatian_ - *punoljetan*

In Macedonian, although both words (_vozrasen _and _polnoleten_) kind of have the same meaning, they are used differently. For example, we say:

*филм за возрасни* (_film za vozrasni_) = _a 18+ film_; We don't say* филм за полнолетни* (_film za polnoletni_).
*Секој полнолетен граѓанин има право на глас.* (_Sekoj polnoleten graǵanin ima pravo na glas._) = lit. _Every "of legal age" citizen has the right to vote._; We never say *Секој возрасен...* (_Sekoj vozrasen..._)
Also, depending on the context, возрасен (_vozrasen_) can also mean _elderly_.

There is also another word, somehow related, meaning "_fully developed physically and mentally_", "_mature_", "_ripe_":
_Macedonian_ - *зрел* (zrel)
_Russian_ - *зрелый* (zrelyi)
_Bulgarian_ - *зрял *(zryal)
_Serbian_ - *зрео */ *zreo*
_Croatian_ - *zreo*


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## bibax

Czech has all mentioned adjectives (vzrostlý, odrostlý, dorostlý, zralý) , but they are not used for "adult".
Btw, Czech retains the consonant *t* (doros*t*lý).

adult in Czech:

*dospělý*, from the verb dospěti;
*plnoletý* (plný + léto = full + year/summer);

dospěti (perf.) = 1. to reach sth 2. to grow up;
spěti (impf.) = to be heading towards sth;

1. Dospěli jsme k dohodě. = We reached agreement. / Dospěli jsme do cíle cesty. = We reached the destination.
2. Dospěli jsme. = We grew up. / Jsme dospělí. = We are adults.

from the verb růsti (= to grow) we have a term *dorostenec / dorostenka*, it is an age category in sport (~ junior);


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## jasio

bibax said:


> Czech has all mentioned adjectives (vzrostlý, odrostlý, dorostlý, zralý) , but they are not used for "adult".


Out of curiosity... what do these words mean?


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## bibax

Briefly:
vzrostlý = full-grown, high-grown, e.g. vzrostlý strom = high-grown tree;
odrostlý = grown out, e.g. odrostlé vlasy = grown out hair;
dorostlý = grown up to, grown back, e.g. dorostlé vlasy = grown back hair;
zralý = mature, ripe;


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## eeladvised

The Slovene counterparts of the words mentioned above are "odrasel" (adult), "polnoleten" (of legal age), "zrel" (mature). 
There is also "dorasel", which takes a dative object and means "able to cope/deal with" that object.


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## oveka

In Ukrainian:
дорослий - _дорослий син /adult son/_
повнолітній - _повнолітні діти /adult children/_
здоровий - _здорова дівка /adult girl/_
дійшлий - _дійшлий розумом /??/_


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