Asking for a phone #

[Olga Meerson]

Anything from Alina's version to какой у тебя телефон,to телефончик дай! All the misunderstandings now (e.g. about the type of the phone) have already been addressed and played upon in numerous dialogues and interactions. This, by the way, is the same problem as English speakers in general have with the Russian use of какой. I was once preparing a Russian a capella concert on campus and, while finding singers for the choir,  asked a student of mine, Какой у Вашей девушки голос? (I meant what type or range of voice -- в смысле альт, сопрано или контральто). The response was very chivalrous towards the girlfriend but linguistically symptomatic nonetheless: Какой-какой?! Ангельский! 

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