град
grad[ɡrat]masculine
The English phrase 'hail' is translated into Russian as град (grad).
град refers to balls of ice.
Meaning: balls of ice (noun)
Which one should you use?
In archaic or poetic contexts, град can also mean 'city', though the modern standard word for city is город.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
When describing something being hit or covered by hail, the instrumental case градом is used, as seen in the phrase под градом пуль (under a hail of bullets).
How do you pronounce it?
grad
Did you know?
- The word град is shared across vastly different language families, appearing as grandō in Latin and hrādúni in Sanskrit.
- The shift from град to город in Russian is due to a linguistic process called 'pleophony', where certain vowel sounds are inserted into a word over time.
- The word град is a 'doublet' of the modern word for 'city', город, meaning they both stem from the same ancient root but evolved through different linguistic paths.
Examples in context
- Мы шли под градом пуль.We marched under a hail of bullets.This sentence shows how to use the instrumental case form град to describe being under a hail of bullets.Tatoeba #2619592 by shanghainese, translation #276761 by AlanF_US
- Обычно град бывает летом.As a rule, hail falls in the summer.Tatoeba #2619591 by shanghainese, translation #21807 by RJH
- Ты когда-нибудь видел град?Have you ever seen it hail?Tatoeba #4790569 by Ooneykcall, translation #326657 by CK
- 5 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Maria and Alexander are looking out the window during a storm.
- Мария MariaСмотри, на улице пошёл град!Smotri, na ulitse poshol grad!Look, it started hailing outside!
- Александр AleksandrОго, какие крупные градины!Ogo, kakiye krupnyye gradiny!Wow, those are huge hailstones!
- Мария MariaНадеюсь, этот град не повредит машину.Nadeyus', etot grad ne povredit mashinu.I hope this hail doesn't damage the car.
- Александр AleksandrНе переживай, Мария, всё будет хорошо.Ne perezhivay, Mariya, vsyo budet khorosho.Don't worry, Maria, everything will be fine.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hail” translations and entries град, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries град, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
