Lermontov’s works in the 80-90-s, the combination of precise and free translations is observed with prevailing exact ones. <...> From the 20-30-s up to present days, the same works of the Russian classicist are the objects of word-for-word translation. <...> The aim of this article is an intention to understand the reasons of prevailing word-for-word translations and to generalize wide-spread methods of its transfer. <...> Non-randomness of prevailing word-for-word translation in the reviewed sphere is justifi ed by the structure of the Kazakh language, correlation of the direct and indirect expressions in the translated text, relations of the signifi cant with the signifi ed. Such an approach allowed justifying the conception on word-for-word translation as an analytical one. <...> Other repeated, stable methods of meanings transfer also attract attention in word-for-word translation. <...> It is a subjective and depictive descriptiveness and such relations between the expression and the graphics as the system of label relations, traditional symbolic character of the Kazakh poetic language that stipulate the rhetorical textual fi gures. <...> The results of the project can be applied in theory and practice of literary translation, history of literature. <...> Keywords: “alien text”, Mikhail Lermontov, word-for-word translation, analytical translation, synthetic translation, Ilyas Dzhansugurov, Magzhan Zhumabayev, Kassym Amanzholov. <...> On the one hand, such practice by the fi rst translator Abai Kunanbaev in 1980-90s was characterized by the strategies of accuracy-dominated and liberal translation © Siberian Federal University. <...> The prevalence of the accuracy in translation and existence of the so-called interpretative translations among them have opened the door to the clarifi cation of the problem whether a number of works being considered as translations of Lermontov’s poems are created by the Kazakh poet, and vice versa: whether that amount of literal works being publicized as works by Abai are actually written Kuralay B. Urazayeva. <...> Sadykov expressed in “Lermontovskaya Enciclodepya” (eng. “Lermontov Encyclopedia”) in 1981 concerning the dominance of literality in translations made by Abai (Ahmetov, Sadykov, 1981). <...> On the other hand, one and the same art works by the Russian classic author became an object of literal translation in the 1920-30s. <...> This article imposes the intention to identify factors of literality dominance in translations of M. Lermontov’s works and describe the most signifi cant ways of meanings preservation in these literal translations. <...> Conceptological framework literal Kazakh The comparison <...>