| Subject | English | Russian |
| inf. | no matter how hard you rack your brains | как голову ни ломай (Technical) |
| gen. | rack one's brain | забивать себе голову (rechnik) |
| idiom. | rack one's brain | напряжённо размышлять (to think very hard in order to try to remember something, solve a problem, etc. (Merriam-Webster): I decided to be brave and opened the screen door just enough to stick my head outside. I held my son up to look at it also, still indoors. After it looked at me and yet showed no fear I had more time to study it and I was racking my brain to identify what it was that I was seeing. (mysteriousuniverse.org) ART Vancouver) |
| gen. | rack one's brain | ломать себе голову (to rack/to puzzle/to beat/to ransack one's brains for his name (for a way out, for the answer to his question) – ломать себе голову над тем, чтобы вспомнить, как его зовут (как найти выход, как ответить на его вопрос) Taras) |
| Gruzovik | rack one's brain | ломать голову |
| gen. | rack one's brain | напрячь свой ум (scherfas) |
| gen. | rack one's brain | ломать голову (над чем-либо-about, with) |
| fig. | rack one's brain | ломать голову |
| idiom. | rack one's brain | стараться вспомнить (to think very hard in order to try to remember something, solve a problem, etc. (Merriam-Webster) ART Vancouver) |
| idiom. | rack one's brain | пытаться сообразить (to think very hard in order to try to remember something, solve a problem, etc. (Merriam-Webster): I decided to be brave and opened the screen door just enough to stick my head outside. I held my son up to look at it also, still indoors. After it looked at me and yet showed no fear I had more time to study it and I was racking my brain to identify what it was that I was seeing. (mysteriousuniverse.org) ART Vancouver) |
| idiom. | rack one's brain | стараться понять (to think very hard in order to try to remember something, solve a problem, etc. (Merriam-Webster): I decided to be brave and opened the screen door just enough to stick my head outside. I held my son up to look at it also, still indoors. After it looked at me and yet showed no fear I had more time to study it and I was racking my brain to identify what it was that I was seeing. (mysteriousuniverse.org) ART Vancouver) |
| idiom. | rack one's brain | стараться разгадать (to think very hard in order to try to remember something, solve a problem, etc. (Merriam-Webster): I decided to be brave and opened the screen door just enough to stick my head outside. I held my son up to look at it also, still indoors. After it looked at me and yet showed no fear I had more time to study it and I was racking my brain to identify what it was that I was seeing. (mysteriousuniverse.org) ART Vancouver) |
| idiom. | rack one's brain | стараться припомнить (to think very hard in order to try to remember something, solve a problem, etc. (Merriam-Webster) ART Vancouver) |
| idiom. | rack one's brain | шевелить мозгами (Val_Ships) |
| idiom. | rack one's brain | ломать себе голову (I've been racking my brain trying to recall where we put the key. Val_Ships) |
| idiom. | rack one's brain | напряжённо думать (to think very hard in order to try to remember something, solve a problem, etc. (Merriam-Webster): I decided to be brave and opened the screen door just enough to stick my head outside. I held my son up to look at it also, still indoors. After it looked at me and yet showed no fear I had more time to study it and I was racking my brain to identify what it was that I was seeing. (mysteriousuniverse.org) ART Vancouver) |
| proverb | rack one's brain over something | ломать голову над чем |
| Игорь Миг | rack one's brains | мудрить |
| Makarov. | rack one's brains | ломать себе голову |
| gen. | rack one’s brains | рыться в памяти |
| slang | rack one's brains | ломать голову |
| inf. | rack one's brains | напряжённо размышлять (Andrey Truhachev) |
| inf. | rack one's brains | напряжённо думать (Andrey Truhachev) |
| gen. | rack one’s brains | порыться в памяти |
| amer. | rack one's brains | кумекать (Val_Ships) |
| amer. | rack one's brains | напрячь свои мозги (I've been racking my brains trying to recall where we put the key. Val_Ships) |
| amer. | rack one's brains | размышлять (I racked my brains all afternoon, but couldn't remember where I put the book. Val_Ships) |
| amer. | rack one's brains | напрягаться (Don't rack your brains! Val_Ships) |
| amer. | rack one's brains | шевелить извилинами (Val_Ships) |
| inf. | rack one's brains | ломать голову |
| Makarov. | rack one's brains | ломать голову (над чем-либо) |
| Makarov. | rack one's brains about something | ломать себе голову над (чем-либо) |
| gen. | rack one's brains about a thing | ломать себе голову над (чем-л.) |
| Makarov. | rack one's brains for a way out | ломать себе голову над тем, как найти выход |
| Makarov. | rack one's brains for his name | ломать себе голову над тем, чтобы вспомнить, как его зовут |
| Makarov. | rack one's brains for the answer to his question | ломать себе голову над тем, как ответить на его вопрос |
| inf. | rack one's brains over | ломать себе голову (над) |
| Makarov. | rack one's brains over something | ломать себе голову над (чем-либо) |
| Makarov. | rack one's brains over something | ломать голову над (чем-либо) |
| Makarov. | rack one's brains over a problem | биться над задачей |
| Gruzovik, fig. | rack one's brains over something | ломать себе голову над чем-либо |
| Makarov. | rack one's brains with something | ломать себе голову над (чем-либо) |
| slang | rack one's brain | шевелить мыслей (Mick racked his brain trying to remember where he saw this girl before. == Мик напряг память, стараясь вспомнить, где же он раньше видел эту девушку.) |
| slang | rack one's brain | напрягать мозги |
| gen. | rack ones brains | ломать голову |
