здоро́вый
zdoróvyj
The English word 'healthy' is translated into Russian as здоро́вый (zdoróvyj).
здоро́вый is used to describe someone or something enjoying good health. It is also used colloquially to refer to someone being 'sound' or 'sane' in a mental or logical sense. A common standard phrase is здоро́вый образ жизни, which means 'healthy lifestyle' and is frequently abbreviated as ЗОЖ.
Meaning: enjoying good health (adj)
Which one should you use?
While здоро́вый refers to physical or general health, it carries a colloquial secondary meaning of being mentally sound or sane.
How does it change in a sentence?
As an adjective, the form changes based on the gender and number of the noun it describes: здоро́вая is the feminine form, здоро́вое is the neuter form and здоро́вые is the plural form. The masculine form здоро́вого is the genitive masculine or neuter form, which is used after many prepositions or to indicate possession.
How do you pronounce it?
zdoróvyj
When do people say it?
To describe someone who is exceptionally robust and healthy, Russians may use the expression Крепкий как бык/дуб, which translates to 'strong as a bull/oak'.
Did you know?
- In casual speech, здоро́во can be used as a greeting similar to 'hey' or 'hi'. While it looks like the adverb for 'healthily', it functions as a slangy way to say 'hello' among friends.
- While English uses 'healthy' for food, Russian typically uses полезный, which means 'useful'. Calling food здоро́вый would sound strange to a native speaker.
- The word здоро́вый is often used as an intensifier to mean 'huge' or 'massive'. For example, здоро́вый дом might be translated as a 'giant house' rather than a 'healthy house'.
Examples in context
- Здоровый мужчинаHealthy man
- Здоровая женщинаHealthy woman
- Я здоров(а)I'm healthy
- Здоровый образ жизниHealthy lifestyle
- Это здоро́вый образ жизни.Eto zdorovyy obraz zhizni.This is a healthy lifestyle.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “healthy” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
