In modern Russian, the word "brothel" is often used in the sense of disorder. It is the most familiar thing for us when we see that the house is not cleaned and everything is not in its place. An example is the mess in Plyushkin's house from N. V. Gogol's poem "Dead Souls". However, there are other meanings as well. Below we will consider the etymology of this concept, determine the language from which this word came to us. Then we examine its lexical meanings. And at the end we will try to find synonyms.
Etymology of the word "mess"
Initially, this term is of Turkic origin. And it originates from the word bardak, which translates as "pot, glass, jug." The same concept is found in the Crimean, Tatar and Turkish modern languages.
In Turkey, glass cups resembling a pear with an extended top are now called a mess. Of these, they drink tea from them up to 12 times a day. For the Turks, this is a mess.
In addition, the inhabitants of the Don region also called the clay pot. It must be with a large hole.
The lexical meaning of the word "mess"
The question of whether a mess is a literary word or not, disappears by itself. In Russian, this concept is colloquial. What does it mean - a mess?
According to the dictionaries of S. I. Ozhegov and T. F. Efremova, this word has two main meanings. It turns out that the mess is:
- Institution where there are women of easy virtue and debauchery, alcohol and money reign.
- Uncleaned place, scattered things lying everywhere.
In addition, there is a figurative meaning of this term - a mess in the head, in thoughts, in life.
Using a word in the first sense is more cultural than in the second. Chaos in the meaning of chaos is used in slang by young people and ordinary people, this is a slang word that is not literary.
There is also the word glove compartment. In one sense it is used as a diminutive word, and in another as a bedside table where you can put something or hide it. Most often, this is called in a shelf in a car opposite the front passenger seat.
Synonyms and examples of usage
There are a number of synonyms in its first meaning, that is, a mess is:
- brothel;
- brothel house;
- brothel;
- nasty party;
- stash.
And in the second sense, the following options can be offered:
- mess;
- defeat;
- mess;
- chaos;
- confusion;
- cartoon.
That is a huge number of synonyms. But it's better to take the term in a live sentence and see how it works in context.
- During the war, the mess was going on both at the front and in the rear.
- The teenager's room was a real mess.
- Small villages are still in a mess.
- Honey, look at my driver's license in the glove compartment.
- Turks drink tea from glass cups called mess.
Thus, we found out that this word is rooted in the Turkic languages. Initially, it had the meaning of a glass or a jug. Then they began to use it in the meaning of a brothel, an obscene place. And now more and more often it has begun to be used in the meaning of disorder in the literal and figurative sense. Indeed, it is difficult to name what is happening in brothels.
