тђлия waist

Красќвый пћяс перехвђтывал её тђлию. A pretty belt encircled her waist.

Semantics

This entry is concerned with the use of the word тђлия to refer to the part of the human torso between the ribs and the hip as an element of someone's figure. It does not refer to animals. This word is used to describe the shape of someone's body and also certain gestures involving someone's waist. It is not used to describe sensations, e.g. pain. In the literature of the 19th century, тђлия was still used in the sense "the upper portion of the torso," e.g. длќнная тђлия, said of a long-waisted person, стрћйная тђлия "a shapely figure," etc. (Compare the word стђн, which also has this usage.) For the difference between the word тђлия and its synonym пћяс, see Lexical Relationships: Synonyms.

The word тђлия is also used to refer to the corresponding part of clothing, a meaning not described in this dictionary.

Morphology

тђлия SS f.in.noun

Syntax

Syntactic actants

Actant 1: whose waist it is
(a) Genitive
(b) Possessive
Тђлия дљвушки бІла тћнкая и гќбкая. The girl's waist was thin and lithe.
Красќвый пћяс перехвђтывал её тђлию. A pretty belt encircled her waist.
NB When the word тђлия functions as a subject and does not have a descriptive modifier, the construction тђлия у + Genitive is often preferred to (a) and (b), above:
Тђлия у дљвушки бІла тћнкая и гќбкая. The girl's waist was thin and lithe.

Lexical Relationships

Synonyms

пћяс waist
NB Пћяс "waist" vs. тђлия "waist." These synonyms have different combinatory properties. The word пћяс "waist" is used to indicate the level of something, e.g. гћлый до пћяса "naked to the waist," водђ по пћяс "water up to one's waist," etc. Such expressions are not used with тђлия "waist." On the other hand, тђлия is used in expressions which describe the shape of that part of the body: пћлная тђлия "a thick waist." The word пћяс is not used in such cases (except for the expression тћнкий в пћясе "small-waisted").
стђн Poetic waist

Size, shape, and other properties

ширинђ тђлииg waist measurement
Портнќха измљрила емџ ширинџ тђлии. The tailor took his waist measurement.
тћнкая тђлия a thin waist
тћнкий в тђлииp Bookish small-waisted
Јто бІл высћкий, тћнкий в тђлии мужчќна срљдних лљт. He was a tall, slim, middle-aged man.
џзкая тђлия a narrow waist
осќная тђлия a wasp waist
NB The above phrase is used only to describe the waist of a woman.
пћлная тђлия; располнљвшая тђлия a thick waist
бІть [no Pf.]: у Ng нљт тђлииg N has no waist
расползђться/расползтќсь в тђлииp to gain weight around one's waist
Её не узнђть: расползлђсь в тђлии, лицћ постарљло. She's changed so much: her waist has thickened and her face aged.
гќбкая тђлия a lithe waist

Movements

брђть/взїть Na за тђлиюa;
обнимђть/обнїть Na за тђлиюa 		to put one's arm or arms around N's waist

Other expressions

перехвђтывать [no Pf.]: Nn перехвђтывает тђлиюa N encircles the waist
NB N = рљмень "a belt," пћяс "a sash," etc.
бІть [no Pf.] стїнута: у Ng тђлия стїнута пћясомi (or ремнёмi) N's waist is cinched with a sash/belt

Sample texts

Ї стїгиваю потџже вокрџг тђлии патронтђшный ремљнь... [А. Купрќн, На глухарљй] I draw the cartridge belt tighter around my waist... [A. Kuprin, "Hunting the Wood Grouse"]
Ћн взїл её за тђлию и закружќл в вђльсе. He grasped her by the waist and began to waltz.
У неё плохђя фигџра, тђлии нљт, нћги тћлстые. She has a bad figure — no waist and heavy legs.