Russian

Russian New Method

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Contents Articles Russian

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Russian/Contents

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Russian/Alphabet

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Russian/Typing

5

Russian/Lesson 1

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Russian/Lesson 2

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Russian/Lesson 3

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Russian/Lesson 4

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Russian/Lesson 5

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Russian/Numbers

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Russian/Appendix/Tables of declension

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Russian/Grammar/Adjectives

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Russian/Grammar/Introduction

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Russian/Grammar/Articles

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Russian/Grammar/Gender

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Russian/Grammar/Pronouns

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Russian/Grammar/Cases

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Russian/Grammar/Nominative

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Russian/Grammar/Genitive case

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Russian/Grammar/Dative case

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Russian/Grammar/Accusative case

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Russian/Grammar/Instrumental case

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Russian/Grammar/Prepositional case

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Russian/Grammar/Noun cases

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Russian/Grammar/Past tense

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Russian/Grammar/Verbs

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Russian/Grammar/What and Which

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Russian/Names

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Russian/Loanwords

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Russian/Cursive

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Russian/Prepositions

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Russian/Verbal Aspect

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Russian/False Friends

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Russian/Interrogative Pronouns

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Russian/Personal Pronouns

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Russian/Possessive Pronouns

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Russian/Vocabulary

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Russian/Geographical Names

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Russian/Useful Words and Expressions

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Russian/Various Stuff

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Russian/Cheat Sheet

92

References Article Sources and Contributors

94

Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors

96

Article Licenses License

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Russian

1

Russian RUSSIAN РУССКИЙ

Learning the Russian Language, for English Speakers Содержа́ние (Contents)

Printable version: View

Russian is a Category II language. (Foreign Service Institute (US))

Russian Wikipedia: Википедия

English Wikipedia's article: Russian language

Russian/Contents The Russian Wikibook is a collaborative effort to create a comprehensive textbook for learners of the Russian language. Russian is an East Slavic language, related to Ukrainian and Belarusian, and is spoken by over 350 million people. This book includes four sections: a main text curriculum, a grammar supplement, an appendix, and a vocabulary. The main text guides the student through the lessons and provides everything to understand the texts that are to be understood. The grammar supplement provides a greater detail into the concepts presented in the lessons. The appendix is there to refer to for usage and other miscellaneous concepts. The vocabulary groups words into concept-based sections for studying.

Содержа́ние (Contents) • Предисло́вие (Foreword) • Áзбука (Alphabet)

Гла́вы (Chapters) 1. Как тебя́ зову́т? (What is your name?) 2. Lesson 2 - Introducing yourself. 3. Lesson 3 - Basic Grammar. 4. Lesson 4 - Vocabulary. 5. Lesson 5 - Text.

МоскваMoscow, the capital of Russia

Russian/Contents

Грамма́тика (Grammar) • • • • • •

Introduction Adjectives Articles Gender Pronouns Cases

• Nominative • Genitive • Dative • Accusative • Instrumental • Prepositional • (Noun cases) • Past tense • Verbs • What and Which

Приложе́ние (Аppendix) • • • • • • • •

Russian Names Alphabet - Overview of Cyrillic. Typing. Loanwords Cursive Prepositions Verbal Aspect False Friends Pronouns • Interrogative Pronouns • Personal Pronouns • Possessive Pronouns

Слова́рь (Vocabulary) • • • • •

Vocabulary Numbers Geographical names Useful Words and Expressions Various Stuff is a collection of stuff that can be used at other places later.

Internet Resources Contributors

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Russian/Contents

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Russian language · Русский язык Lessons

Introduction · Alphabet · Lesson 1 · Lesson 2 · Lesson 3 · Lesson 4 · Lesson 5

Reference

Numbers · Declensions · Adjectives · Conjugations · Prepositions · Verbal Aspect · Interrogative Pronouns · Personal Prn. · Possessive Prn. · Cursive

(view) ( edit [1] )

Appendices Appendix · Alphabet · Internet · Cheat Sheet

References [1] http:/ / en. wikibooks. org/ w/ index. php?title=Template:Russian& action=edit

Russian/Alphabet Russian language · Русский язык Lessons

Introduction · Alphabet · Lesson 1 · Lesson 2 · Lesson 3 · Lesson 4 · Lesson 5

Reference

Numbers · Declensions · Adjectives · Conjugations · Prepositions · Verbal Aspect · Interrogative Pronouns · Personal Prn. · Possessive Prn. · Cursive

(view) ( edit [1] )

Appendices Appendix · Alphabet · Internet · Cheat Sheet

Russian alphabet The Russian alphabet has 33 letters. It descended from the Greek alphabet, so while some may appear like the English alphabet, the pronunciation might be very different. It consists of 21 consonants and 10 vowel letters. The last two, ь, and ъ , are neutral, as they do not designate sounds. 1

2 3 4 5

6

7

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9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33

А Б В Г Д Е Ё Ж З

И

Й

К

Л

М

Н

О

П

Р

С

Т

У

Ф

Х

Ц

Ч

Ш Щ

а

и

й

к

л

м

н

о

п

р

с

т

у

ф

х

ц

ч

ш

б

в

г

д

е

ё

ж

з

щ

ъ

Ы ы

ь

Э

Ю

Я

э

ю

я

Similar to English: easiest to grasp, their sound resembles the English sound Hard and soft signs: see Signs "Greek" letters: easy for people that know Greek. Л is pronounced like Lambda.

Basic pronunciation rules Notes on the Alphabet and Pronunciation of Russian 1. While Russian has a mostly phonetic orthography, there are a few exceptions: • The letter "г" between the letters "e" and "o" and between two "o"'s it is pronounced as /v/, e.g. "его" (his, him) is pronounced /jevo/. This rule only applies when "его" is at the end of the word. Note that this applies only to the case endings (genitive and accusative), there are words that fit this description but are pronounced normally, e.g. "много" /mnogo/ - many, much, a lot (of) • Voiced consonants with voiceless counterparts lose their voicing at the end of a word, e.g. "строганов" (stroganoff) is pronounced /stroganof/.

Russian/Alphabet • Voiced consonants with voiceless counterparts become unvoiced before voiceless consonants, e.g. "водка" (vodka) is pronounced /votka/. • Similarly, voiceless consonants with voiced counterparts become voiced before voiced consonants, e.g. "футбол" (soccer/football) is pronounced /fudbol/. • Vowel is only fully pronounced when it is under accent. In the non-accented (weak) position, vowel is "reduced" to the neutral sound. Spelling, on the other hand, doesn't depend on whether position is accented or not. This particularly applies to the 'o'. 2. The hard sign (Ъ/ъ) indicates that the preceding consonant is not palatalized. However, it has been very rarely used since the spelling reform of 1918. 3. The soft sign (Ь/ь) indicates that the preceding consonant is palatalized. 4. The vowels Е/е, Ё/ё, И/и, Ю/ю, Я/я make the consonants before them palatal consonant. This means that one pronounces the consonant with the middle of the tongue raised, pressing against the hard palate.

Pronunciation mnemonics 1. Letters identical to their latin equivalents : к о м е т а (comet) 2. "Greek" letters: г л ф (as in Gamma, Lambda, Phi). Try also, the Russian word, флаг, which means "flag". 3. да (da) нет (nyet): two easy Russian words that show you how д, н and е are pronounced 4. суши-бар (sushi-bar): these are popping up all over the place in St. Petersburg... this word is a very useful way of learning how с, у, ш, и, б and р are pronounced 5. хип-хоп (hip-hop): actually, the х is a much harsher sound, like the "ch" in Scottish "loch", but otherwise хип-хоп music can help you learn х and п 6. союз (Soyuz): useful for learning the ю and the з (which you should just think of as a cursive latin Z) 7. я (ya/I;) and вы (vy/you): pronouns you'll be using most often when talking with strangers, as in "do you speak English? I do not speak Russian". Unlike English, pronouns can be ommited due to context in the present and future tenses. 8. царь (tsar) and чай (chai): for keeping your ц and ч straight

See also • How to type Russian

Lesson 1 >>

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Russian/Typing

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Russian/Typing Russian language · Русский язык Lessons

Introduction · Alphabet · Lesson 1 · Lesson 2 · Lesson 3 · Lesson 4 · Lesson 5

Reference

Numbers · Declensions · Adjectives · Conjugations · Prepositions · Verbal Aspect · Interrogative Pronouns · Personal Prn. · Possessive Prn. · Cursive

(view) ( edit [1] )

Appendices Appendix · Alphabet · Internet · Cheat Sheet

This page overviews how to type in the Cyrillic alphabet, which is used in the Russian language.

Stuck in a lab/cafe/library? Even if you have no administrator access, you can still type in Cyrillic! It might not be ideal, but it will do in a pinch. Please see the excellent 'Virtual Keyboard for Russian and Ukranian' by Paul Gorodyansky. Google for it, or try here: http://www.russianaa-brooklyn.com/VirtKbd/screen_e.htm [1]

Ubuntu 9.04 Step 1 add the keyboard layout indicator applet to the panel • Right click on the main panel, somewhere where it is empty and gray. • • • • • • •

• (ie, move the mouse all the way to the top left hand corner of the screen, right click) click 'add to panel' choose the 'keyboard indicator' applet You should see a new panel applet, with something like 'USA' printed on it. Right click the 'USA' Go to Keyboard Preferences Click Layouts Click Add

Step 2 choose a layout • You can search under Russian Language, there are several options. • If you have a US/English keyboard, you might like the 'USA Phonetic Russian' layout. You can only find this by looking under English language or United States as a country. • Add it • Now, you should be able to switch your layout by left-clicking on the applet. • It should switch from saying USA to Rus or USA to USA2. • Try clicking it, and typing in cyrillic.

Russian/Typing Step 4 tweaking • If you want to switch layout via keyboard--• • • • •

Right click on the applet Go to keyboard preferences Layouts Layout Options Keys to switch layout

• If you are using the USA Russian Phonetic layout you can use a 'level 3' key to instantly let you type punctuation and other normal US-english characters. Look under layout options/keys for level 3. • Alternative: You can also use SCIM

KDE Note: the X server configuration (see #XFree86 below) may conflict with KDE settings if you change both. Make sure you have Russian i18n installed. Go to Regional & Accessibility - Keyboard Layout in the KDE Control Center. Add the Russian layout to your active layouts. You might want to choose the phonetic Layout variant (yawerty, or яверты). With the flag icon in your taskbar you can now switch between different layouts. Many letters now are where you expect them to be (for example s - с, p - п, g - г), but some others are harder to find: • • • • • • •

`ю =ч [ш ]щ \э # ё (shift 3) $ Ё (shift 4)

Mac OS X You don't need to install any software or fonts, but you do need to add Russian to your computer's list of languages. Open System Preferences from the Dock and click on 'International'. There you will find a tab called 'Languages' containing a list which may already include Russian. If it isn't there, click 'Edit List' and add it. Don't put Russian at the top of your list unless you want to start using Russian date styles or list attributes in all of your applications. Another tab called 'Input Menu' in the same place will allow you to choose a keyboard layout such as Cyrillic or Phonetic. Then you can switch keyboard layouts and languages at any time using the flag icon in the top-right of the screen.

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Russian/Typing

Windows Instructions follow for adding a traditional Russian keyboard layout for Windows, however many may prefer to use a phonetic Russian keyboard layout. The setup is slightly more involved as the user must either create or use an existing third party keyboard layout. One way to set up common versions of Windows with a phonetic Russian layout is to follow Paul Gorodyansky's instructions on his "Russification" site using files he has created for this purpose. The relevant English language page is http:/ / winrus. com/kbd_e.htm. For Windows 2000: 1. Click the Start button. 2. Go to Settings...Control Panel. 3. Double-click Keyboard. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

Click the Input Locales tab. Click the Change... button to bring up the Text Services window. Under Installed Services, click Add.... In the drop-down list of input languages, select Russian and click OK. If you would like to change between keyboard inputs without going through the Control Panel each time, click the Language Bar button under Preferences in the Text Services window. Next select to Show the Language Bar on the Desktop and click OK. 9. To exit, click OK in the Text Services window and in the Keyboard Properties window. If you don't see "Russian" in the list: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Go back to Control Panel. Double-click Regional Options Under Language Settings for the system check off Cyrillic Click OK

Note: You might need Windows 2000 CD> Better to check Cyrillic off during installation of Windows. Windows XP To set up the keyboard for Cyrillic Russian/Ukraine in Windows XP 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

click on 'Start' Go to 'Control Panel' Click 'Regional & Language Options' Click 'Language' tab Click 'Settings' Add 'Russian' Click 'Apply' and then 'OK'

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Windows Vista To add the Cyrillic keyboard for use on your computer: 1. Click on the windows logo in the bottom left hand corner 2. Click the Control Panel button (or clickable text if you have it set that way) • For ease of finding this, press in the left pane "Switch to classic view" 1. Now select Regional and Language Options 2. Click on the Keyboards and Languages tab 3. Press Change Keyboards • A window should appear that lists all the installed languages to your computer. This window should be called Text Services and Input Languages 1. Press Add... 2. Now scroll down to where it says Russian (Russia) 3. Expand that menu by pressing the + • If the dropdown menu Keyboard isn't already expaneded, press that too 1. Now checkbox Russian and press OK, and then Apply. • If this is the first language you've added to this computer, a small icon near your taskbar that says "EN" should appear, to change the input language to Russian for whatever window you have opened, press it and select RU. • Please note, every time you change windows (say from an IM window to your browser) it will keep your language setting on the previous window, and the new one will be set to use your default input language, which is most likely EN. Keyboard icon wil show on taskbar. Left click to toggle between English and Russian. As an added help, apply keyboard stickers for Cyrillic Russian/Ukraine. You can find them on e-Bay, under 'stickers, Keyboard, under Computer/Networking. They are available in several colors and are quite reasonable.

XFree86 XFree86 4.3 may be configured for Russian keyboard layout in the Keyboard InputDevice section of the configuration file (typically /etc/X11/XF86Config). Add the following two lines to that section: Option Option

"XkbLayout" "XkbOptions"

"us,ru" "grp:shift_toggle"

This arrangement will allow you to switch between US and Russian layouts by pressing the shift keys together. Note that this configuration is independent of the desktop environment (GNOME, KDE) or window manager (sawfish, metacity, kwin) in use, and might conflict with it if you change both.

X.Org Same as XFree86, but the configuration file is called “xorg.conf”.

References [1] http:/ / www. russianaa-brooklyn. com/ VirtKbd/ screen_e. htm

Russian/Lesson 1

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Russian/Lesson 1 Russian language · Русский язык Lessons

Introduction · Alphabet · Lesson 1 · Lesson 2 · Lesson 3 · Lesson 4 · Lesson 5

Reference

Numbers · Declensions · Adjectives · Conjugations · Prepositions · Verbal Aspect · Interrogative Pronouns · Personal Prn. · Possessive Prn. · Cursive

(view) ( edit [1] )

Appendices Appendix · Alphabet · Internet · Cheat Sheet

Lesson 1 — Как тебя зовут?

Dialogue Саша: Привет! Меня зовут Саша. Как тебя зовут? Катя: Привет, Саша. Меня зовут Катя. Как дела? Саша: Хорошо. А у тебя? Катя: Очень хорошо. Саша: Я студент. А ты студентка? Катя: Да, я студентка. Саша: Ну, пока. Translation (wait until the end of the lesson).

Hello!

Здравствуйте!

Смольный институт The Smolny Institute, which was used as Lenin's headquarters during the October Revolution.

Russian/Lesson 1

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Russian Vocabulary • Lesson 1 Привет! Hello!

• •

English

Русский

Listen Notes

Hello

здрáвствуйте

·

здрáвствуй

·

Hi

привéт

·

X

Good morning!

дóброе ýтро

Good day!

дóбрый день

Good evening!

дóбрый вéчер

Good night!

спокóйной нóчи

See you later!

покá

·

X

Goodbye

до свидáния

·

O

The first "в" in "здравствуйте" is silent. The adjective добрый means "kind".

Formal and Informal Russian distinguishes between formal and informal modes of address (register). Friends and family address each other using the informal register with the second person singular pronoun "ты" (you), while employees and students use the formal register with bosses and professors with the second person plural pronoun "вы" (you, referring to more than one person). In the vocabulary tables "Notes" column, the "X" denotes an exclusively informal term, and the "O" indicates an exclusively formal term. Examples —Доброе утро, студенты! —До свидания, профессор. —Катя, пока!

Russian/Lesson 1

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What's your name?

—Как тебя зовут? —Владимир. А тебя? —Иосиф. Очень приятно.

Russian Vocabulary • Lesson 1 Как тебя зовут? What is your name? English

Русский

Notes

What is your name? как тебя́ зову́т?

X

как вас зову́т?

O

My name is..

меня́ зову́т..

Your name is..

тебя́ зову́т..

X

вас зову́т..

O

Nice to meet you.

óчень прия́тно

• "Как тебя зовут?", the phrase used to ask someone's name, translates to "How do they call you?" • "Очень приятно", means "very pleasant." Examples • Как тебя зовут? What is your name? • Меня зовут Пётр. My name is Pyotr. • Очень приятно. Nice to meet you. Grammar • It should now be obvious that тебя and вас are interchangeable, the former used in casual / familiar settings and the latter in formal settings; вас is also the plural form of "you". An example may be у вас есть хлеб? meaning, "do you have bread?" - being the plural and formal both.

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• With the first phrase comes an interesting note. Because the function of words is mostly determined by declension, word order is mostly free. "Меня зовут Пётр" and "Пётр меня зовут" mean the same thing. "Mostly" is highlighted, however, because some combinations do not work, so avoid straying too far from the word order of the examples until later. Go to the exercise.

Russian names Russian names for people are composed of a given name, a patronymic, and a family name. The given name is a person's first name, and is usually chosen by the parents at birth. The patronymic is a derivation of the father's name, modified by gender. The family name is the name shared by the immediate family and passed down by the male descendants, but also modified by gender. • Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (Влади́мир Влади́мирович Пу́тин) is Russia's second president. • Vladimir is his given name. • Vladimirovich is his patronymic. His father was also named Vladimir. If he had a sister, her patronymic would be Vladimirovna (Владимировна). • Putin is his family name. His wife, Lyudmila Putina has the feminine version of the name, Putina.

Экскурсовод: —В этом доме Владимир Ильич Ленин с Инессой Армамнд скрывался от Надежды Константиновны Крупской.

• Maria Yuryevna Sharápova (Мари́я Ю́рьевна Шара́пова) is a famous tennis player. • Maria is her given name. • Yuryevna is her patronymic. Her father was named Yuri. If she had a brother, his patronymic would be Yuryevich (Юрьевич). • Sharapova is her family name. Her father's family name is Sharapov.

Russian/Lesson 1

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How are you?

—Мария, как дела? —Неплохо.

Russian Vocabulary • Lesson 1 Как дела? How are you? English

Русский Listen Notes

How are you?

Как дела́?

Well ("goodly")

хорошо́

Badly

пло́хо

Not badly

непло́хо

And you?

А у тебя́?

X

А у вас?

O

Thank you

спаси́бо

• The three answers to "как дела" are adverbs. • You can append "очень" (very) to the front of any adverb. Example • Иван: Привет, Юлия. Как дела? Hello, Yuliya. How are you? • Юлия: Очень хорошо, спасибо. А у тебя, Иван? Very well, thanks. And you, Ivan? • Иван: Неплохо. Пока! Not bad. See you later! Go to the exercise.

·

·

Russian/Lesson 1

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Who is this?

—Кто это? —Это Миша. Он лев. —Ясно. Очень приятно.

Russian Vocabulary • Lesson 1 Кто это? Who is this? English

Русский Listen Notes

I am..

Я..

·

You are..

Ты..

X

Вы..

O

He is..

Он..

M

She is..

Она..

F

Student

студе́нт

·

студе́нтка

M F

Who is..

кто

·

This

э́то

·

Examples • Сергей: Доброе утро, Наташа. Как дела? Good morning, Natasha. How are you? • Наташа: Хорошо, спасибо. Кто это? Well, thanks. Who is this? • Сергей: Это Иван. Он студент. This is Ivan. He is a student. • Иван: Очень приятно. Вы студентка? Nice to meet you. Are you a student? • Наташа: Да, я студентка. Yes, I am a student. Grammar • Russian lacks "is" and articles: Russian does not use the existence verb "быть" in the present tense, or articles such as "a", "an", or "the." Simply following "я" (I, me) with a noun suffices to say "I am a.." However, in written Russian, when the subject is a noun (not a pronoun), an em dash (—) functions as the verb. The proper sentence to say "Ivan is a student" is "Иван — студент."

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• Gender: The noun "студент" is the first instance of grammatical gender. "Студент" is used when the speaker is referring to himself or another male. "Студентка" is used when the speaker is referring to herself or another female. Go to the exercise.

Summary In this lesson, you have learned • • • •

How to greet people (Привет, доброе утро). How to introduce yourself (Меня зовут Иван). How to introduce others (Это Сергей). How to say how you are (Хорошо, неплохо).

Finish the exercises and translate the introductory dialogue before moving on.

Lesson 2 >>

Russian/Lesson 2 Russian language · Русский язык Lessons

Introduction · Alphabet · Lesson 1 · Lesson 2 · Lesson 3 · Lesson 4 · Lesson 5

Reference

Numbers · Declensions · Adjectives · Conjugations · Prepositions · Verbal Aspect · Interrogative Pronouns · Personal Prn. · Possessive Prn. · Cursive

(view) ( edit [1] )

Appendices Appendix · Alphabet · Internet · Cheat Sheet

Произноше́ние Pronunciation Russian letters do not always sound the same. The pronunciation depends on their position in the word and on the stress of the letter. Reduced О (when not stressed) sounds like А, as in the A in about. Reduced Е (when not stressed) sounds like И, as in the E in piglet. However, this reduction is not so strong as in the case of O. If you pronounce these letters without reducing them you will be understandable, but sound strange. Voiced consonants at the end of the word become unvoiced. Таз sounds like tas, взвод sounds like vzvot. The same thing happens if a voiced consonant is followed by an unvoiced one. For example, "подско́к" sounds like patskók.

Диало́ги Dialogs Comment: If you talk to one person and would like to make it respectful, use "Вы" and not "Tы". You need to use "вы" with a small first letter character only if you need to talk to more than one person. You can also to the audio version of this dialog. Здра́вствуйте, я рад (ра́да) Вас ви́деть! Zdrastvuyti, ya rat (rada) Vas vidjet Hello, I am glad to see you! Note: ра́да(rada) is what a female speaker would say, while рад(rat) is what a male speaker would say. This means glad. До́брый день, и я то́же.

Russian/Lesson 2 Dobry denj, i ya tozhi Good afternoon, me too. Меня́ зовут́ Джо́ан, а Вас? Minya zavut Joanne, ah Vas? My name is Joanne, and yours? (Literally, "[they] call me Joanne, and [how do they call] you"). О́чень прия́тно! Ochin' priyatna Pleased to meet you. (Literally, "[it is] very pleasant"). А меня́ — Ма́рья Степа́новна, мо́жно про́сто Ма́ша. A minya – Maryah Stipanavna, mozhna prosta Masha And mine is Marya Stepanovna, one may call me just Masha. (Literally, "and [they call] me Marya Stepanovna, [one] may [call me] just Masha"). Спаси́бо, до встре́чи! Spasiba, da fstrechi Thank you, see you again! (Literally, "thank you, till another meeting"). До свида́ния. Da svidanya Good bye. (Literally, "till another seeing"). ... Lesson 3 >>

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Russian/Lesson 3

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Russian/Lesson 3 Russian language · Русский язык Lessons

Introduction · Alphabet · Lesson 1 · Lesson 2 · Lesson 3 · Lesson 4 · Lesson 5

Reference

Numbers · Declensions · Adjectives · Conjugations · Prepositions · Verbal Aspect · Interrogative Pronouns · Personal Prn. · Possessive Prn. · Cursive

(view) ( edit [1] )

Appendices Appendix · Alphabet · Internet · Cheat Sheet

Я студeнт. This means "I am a student" in Russian. • "Я" means "I". • "студе́нт", as you may remember from Lesson 1, means "student". • Russian does not distinguish "a student" from "the student"; that is, it does not use articles ("a", "an", "the"). So the above sentence could also be translated as "I am the student." • Russian does not use the verb to be in the present tense. Instead, a dash separates the subject of the sentence from the predicate (but the dash is not put between a pronoun and a verb). Examples You not student. Ты

не

студeнт. ("You are not a student.")

This boy –

student.

Этот мальчик –

студeнт. ("This boy is a student.")

Russian has eight personal pronouns altogether: я (I)

мы (we)

ты (you, singular)

вы (you, plural)

он (he), она́ (she), оно́ (it)

они́ (they)

Grammar vs. vocabulary; "getting by" vs. "good Russian" Are you learning Russian to "get by" on a one-week business trip to Moscow? Or do you want to learn "good Russian"? To "get by" you need basic grammar, but not the byzantine grammar of "good Russian." You could treat all nouns as if they were masculine, and all verbs as if you are the person doing the action, and Russians would understand your meaning. But you should read over the many grammar rules so that you have a clue what Russians are saying. E.g., you should be able to recognize when a Russian uses the prepositional case, even if you only use the nominative case. If you want to marry a Russian woman, learn good Russian. Russian women (and women all over the world) are impressed by men with good language skills. Note that in English the words "conjugate" (to produce the different

Russian/Lesson 3 forms of a verb) and "conjugal" (relating to marriage) come from the same root word (meaning "to join together"). In other words, Russian women think that a man who can say "I study, you study, he studies, she studies, we study, they study" correctly (in Russian) will make a good husband! Another reason to learn "good Russian" is to prevent Alzheimer's. Working puzzles keeps your brain healthy. Think of Russian grammar as a set of (really complicated) puzzles. Native speakers learn grammar as children, by listening to adults talk, and being corrected by their mothers. A child who reads a lot, and whose parents speak correctly, doesn't need to learn grammar rules. As an adult learning Russian, you'll learn best if a native Russian listens to you and corrects your mistakes. But the grammar rules will act as shortcuts, to help you learn faster. When learning anything, some people are auditory learners, some are visual, and some are movement learners. (See "The Open Mind," by Dawna Marcova, for more about this.) But all three learning styles are needed for organizing and committing to long-term memory. You may prefer to hear spoken Russian, or see written Russian, or (for movement learners) write a Russian word and then write how it sounds in English. You may need to do an activity, such as cooking dinner, to pay attention. But all of us need to do all of these things to learn well.

Gender You may guess correctly that the correct way to say "He is a student" in Russian is "Он студент." However, things change a bit when talking about "она". As in many Indo-European languages—including English until several hundred years ago—gender is an important feature of Russian grammar. Every noun, as well as the three third-person singular pronouns, has a characteristic gender: masculine, feminine, or neuter. Masculine nouns end in a consonant. Remember that й is a consonant. Feminine nouns end in а or я. Neuter nouns end in о or е. Nouns ending in ь can be masculine or feminine. There's no rule, you just have to memorize these words.

Formal and Informal Russians differentiate between formal and informal social relationships. Two words translate to "you": Вы (pronounced "vee" but make it short, don't draw out the vowel) is how you say "you" to a teacher, police officer, etc. Ты (pronounced "tee") is how you say "you" to a friend or family member. Russians are more formal than Americans, so if in doubt use Вы! Вы is also "you plural" or "y'all. In other words, you address a superior person as if he or she were several people. The greeting здравствуйте (formal) and здравствуй (informal) has two forms. The word "your" also comes in formal and informal: вас (formal) and тебя (informal).

Russian names Russians use three names: first name, or имя; middle or patronymic name, or отчество, which is their father's first name plus a suffix meaning "son of" (ович) or "daughter of" (овна); and the last name or family name, or фамилия. Women's last names add an а to the masculine form of the name. To address a Russian formally, don't use "Mr." or "Ms." Instead, address the person using his or her first name and patronymic. Russians use relatively few first names. There are only a dozen or so men's first names, and maybe three dozen women's first names. Creativity in baby-naming isn't encouraged.

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Russian/Lesson 3 Russians also use diminutives or nicknames—lots! Each name typically has a version used by your best friend, another used by your other friends, another used by your teachers, another used by your grandmother, another used when you are scolded, etc.

Noun Cases English uses word order to indicate a sentence's subject and object. E.g., "Bob eats lunch" and "Lunch eats Bob" have different meanings in English. Word order is less important in Russian. Instead, meaning is conveyed by suffixes. It would be like an eaten lunch becoming "lunchoo," so you could say "Bob eats lunchoo" or "Lunchoo eats Bob," and still make it clear that it's the lunch that is eaten (not Bob). This would be straightforward enough if there were simple one case for the subject of a sentence, and a second case for the object of the sentence. Instead, Russian has six cases, conveying such meanings as where you are vs. where you're going, or whether the object of the sentence is animate or inanimate!

Nominative case The primary case, used for the subject of the sentence ("Bob"), is called the nominative case. This is the case you find in dictionaries.

Accusative case "Lunch" is the direct object of "Bob eats lunch." The direct object is used in the accusative case. Masculine and neuter nouns in the accusative case are the same as nouns in the nominative case. Feminine nouns change their а or я ending to у or ю, respectively. E.g., "car" is машина (pronounced "masheena") in nominative case, and машину (pronounced "masheenoo")in the accusative case.

Prepositional case When a sentence contains a complement of location, the noun is in the prepositional case. In general, you add е (prounced "yeh") to end of the word. E.g., "I live in Michigan" becomes "I live in Michigane." If the word ends in й, а, or я, replace that letter with е. E.g., "She is going to Minnesota" becomes "She is going to Minnesote." There are two exceptions to the е ending. Never write ие, instead write ии (yes, Russians pronounce both, like "ee-ee"). The other exception is foreign nouns ending in о, и, or у. These look the same as the nominative case. E.g., Colorado, Kentucky, and Peru don't change. Nouns in the prepositional case are always preceded by "in" or "about." Each word comes in two versions. If "in" is an activity, or a place where an activity is done (for example, the ballet) use на (pronounced "na"). For other places, use в (pronounced "veh" or pronounced with the next word if it starts with a vowel, e.g., "in Atlanta" would be "vatlanta"). "About" is о, or, if the following word starts with a vowel, об.

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Russian/Lesson 3

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Куда vs. где Куда asks "where are [you/he/she/etc.] going?" It's pronounced "kooda," which sounds like a form of head lice. Где asks "where are [you/he/she/etc.]?" I.e., куда is moving, где is static. It's pronounced "gdye" as in "YEvropa". Statements that could answer the question куда are in the accusative case. E.g., "We're driving to St. Petersburg, Florida" would be in the accusative case, if you said it in Russian. Statements that could answer the question где are in the prepositional case. E.g., "We live in Moscow, Idaho" would be in the prepositional case. This is easy to remember because the vowels in Куда are у and а—nouns that end in а (feminine nouns) change to у in the accusative case. The vowel in где is е, the letter you add to end nouns in the prepositional case.

Genitive case The genitive case is used with numbers. E.g., "I have six chairs"(У меня есть шесть стульев) is plural both in English and in Russian! It's genitive case. Genitive nouns Masculine and neuter nouns form the genitive case the same way: add а at the end. E.g., стол (sing. table) becomes стола́, but столы́ (pl. tables) becomes столо́в. The exceptions are masculine words ending in й or ь add я. if the word ends in a vowel, drop the vowel then add a. Feminine nouns drop the а and add ы. E.g., лампа (lamp) becomes лампы. The exceptions are if the word ends in я or ь, or for the 7-letter spelling rule, add и. Genitive adjectives Masculine and neuter adjectives form the genitive case the same way: change the ending to ого. This is pronounced "ovo"! The exceptions are masculine words ending in й or ь, or for the 5-letter spelling rule with the ending unstressed, change to его (pronounced "yevo"). Feminine adjectives change the ending to ой (rhymes with "boy"). The exceptions are feminine words ending in й or ь, or for the 5-letter spelling rule with the ending unstressed, change to ей (pronounced "yay"). Genitive case of possessive pronouns Nominative

Genitive Meaning

мой, моё (masc., neut.)

моег'о

my

твой, твоё (masc., neut.) твоег'о

your (informal)

наш, на́ше (masc., neut.) на́шего

our

ваш, ва́ше (masc., neut.) ва́шего

your (formal, plural)

моя́ (feminine)

мое́й

my

твоя́ (feminine)

твое́й

your (informal)

на́ша (feminine)

на́шей

our

ва́ша (feminine)

ва́шей

your (formal, plural)

The possessive pronouns его́, её, and их (his, hers, theirs) never change.

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Genitive case of demonstrative pronouns Nominative

Genitive Meaning

тот (masc., neut.)

чьего́

that

'это, 'этот, 'эти (masc., neut.) э́того

this

тот (feminine)

чьей

that

э́та (feminine)

э́той

this

Genitive case of "first" and "third" Nominative

Genitive Meaning

оди́н(masc., neut.)

одног'о

first

тре́тий(masc., neut.) тре́тьего third одна́(feminine)

одно́й

first

тре́тья(feminine)

тре́тьей

third

"I have something" Genitive case is also used for saying you have something, or you don't have something. To say that you have something, start with У (means "by" or "next to"). Then change the pronoun (я, ты, вы, etc.) to the following: Nominative Genitive Pronounciation Meaning кто

у кого́

oo kogo

where

я

у меня́

oo myehnyah

I have

ты

у тебя́

oo tyebyah

you have (informal)

он

у него́

oo nyehgo

he has

она

у неё

oo nyehyo

she has

мы

у нас

oo nas

we have

вы

у вас

oo vas

you have (formal or plural)

они

у них

oo neekh

they have

In other words, Russians don't say "Ivan has a dacha," but rather say "By Ivan has dacha."

Dative case Dative case is used with the indirect object of a sentence. It is, when people want "to say something to her" or "to give(to sell, to show and etc.) something to him", etc. (for example: He shows to her this beautiful picture (Он пока́зывает ей э́ту прекра́сную карти́ну). Note here the difference between the direct object from earlier and the indirect object: Ivan gives a letter (direct object, accusative case) to his sister (indirect object, dative case).

Russian/Lesson 3

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Nominative Dative Pronounciation Meaning кто

ком'у

komoo

to whom

я

мне

mnye

to me

ты

теб'е

tyebye

to you (informal)

он

ем'у

yemoo

to him

она

ей

yey

to her

мы

нам

nam*

to us

вы

вам

vam*

to you (formal or plural)

они

им

eem

to them

• The letter "а" in нам and вам is pronouncing as "U" in pronoun "Us".

Russian lacks "a," "the," and "to be" Russian lacks the articles "a," "an," and "the." English uses the definite article "the" to indicate a specific place, thing, etc.: "I ate the orange" suggests there was only one orange, or it was special or something. English uses the indefinite articles "a" and "an" to indicate that the following noun is not a specific, e.g., "I ate an orange" suggests there were several oranges. Note that English uses articles only for singular nouns: "I ate oranges" (plural) lacks an article. Russian also lacks the verb "to be," and its conjugations "am," "are," and "is." Thus the English four-word sentence "I am a student" is just two words in Russian: "Я студент." In written Russian, when a sentence has two nouns in a row, a — is written between the nouns to indicate the verb "to be." E.g., "Tanya is a student" translates to "Таня — студент."

"This," "these," and "those" Russian has the adjectives "this" and "these." To "get by" in Russian use это (pronounced "eto") for both "this" (singular) and "these" (plural). To speak "good Russian" it gets confusing. If a word is between "this" (or "these") and the noun ("This is my suitcase") then это doesn't change. But if the noun immediately follows "this" or "these" ("This suitcase is mine") then, if the noun is masculine, это changes to этот (pronounced "etot") ; if the noun is feminine then это changes to эта (pronounced "eta") ; if the noun is neuter then это doesn't change; and if the noun is plural ("these") then это changes to эти (pronounced "etee") . Russian also has the adjective "those": те.

Plural nouns In English we add "s" (or "es") to indicate that a noun is plural. Russian isn't so simple. Masculine nouns ending in a "hard" consonant add ы. E.g., студент (student) becomes студенты (students). Masculine nouns ending in the "soft" consonants й or ь add и. E.g., словарь (dictionary) becomes словари (dictionaries). If you speak Russian (without writing) you can "get by" without learning this distinction, as ы and и sound similar. Feminine nouns ending in а change the а to ы. Feminine nouns ending in я change the я to и. Thus masculine and feminine nouns follow a similar pattern for plural. Again, if you only want to speak "get by" Russian you can ignore this distinction because a and я sound similar. Neuter nouns have a different pattern for plural. Neuter nouns ending in o change the o to a. Neuter nouns ending in e change the e to я. Thus, neuter plural nouns look like feminine singular nouns.

Russian/Lesson 3 Note that these rules are for plural nouns. Plural adjectives follow different rules.

The 7-letter spelling rule Now it gets complicated. After the letters к, г, х, ш, щ, ж, and ч, always add (or change a or я to) и, not ы. E.g., книга (book) becomes книги (books).

Exceptional plurals Some masculine nouns drop the last vowel before adding ы or и. E.g., подарок (present or gift) becomes подарки. Some masculine nouns add a for plural. E.g., дом (house) becomes дома (houses). Words of foreign origin ending in o, и, or у don't change between singular and plural. E.g., радио means "radio" or "radios." Note that foreign nouns with these endings also don't change in prepositional case (e.g., Colorado, Kentucky, and Peru).

The personal pronouns "he," "she," and "it" The personal pronouns are straightforward: "He" (masculine) is он. "She" (feminine) is она. "It" (neuter) is оно. "They" (plural) is они. Note that in English we use "he" and "she" for animate objects (people and animals) and "it" for everything else, but Russians use "he" for all masculine nouns, "she" for all feminine nouns, and "it" for all neuter nouns. Thus, a car (машина) is always "she" because машина is feminine.

"Whose?" The English question word "whose" translates to four Russian words, depending on gender: чей (pronounced "chey") is masculine. чья (pronounced "chyah") is feminine. чьё (pronounced "chyo") is neuter. чьи (pronounced "chyee") is plural. If you just want to "get by," say "chee" and you'll be right about 50% of the time.

The possessive pronouns "my," "your," "our," "his," "her," and "their" To learn to conjugate verbs as well as possessive pronouns, memorize the following order of pronouns: я (I) ты (you, informal) он/она (he/she) мы (we) вы (you, formal and plural) они (they) In this order, in English the possessive pronouns are "my, your, his, her, our, (no formal your), their." Russian makes this complicated because four of these words change depending on whether the following noun is masculine, feminine, neuter, or plural. Three don't change. The three possessive pronouns that don't change are "his," "her," and "their." In Russian these are его ("his"), pronounced "yehvo" (not "yehgo"); её, pronounced "yehyo" ("her yo-yo" would sound like "yeh-yo yo-yo"); and их (pronounced "eech," like the German word for "I"). The four possessive pronouns that change are "my," "your" (informal and formal), and "our."

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Russian/Lesson 3 "My" is мой (masculine, pronounced "moy," which sounds vaguely like a New York Yiddish version of "my"); моя (feminine, pronounced "mo-yah"); моё (neuter, pronounced "mo-yo"), and мои (plural, pronounced "mo-ee"). "Your" (informal Ты) is твой (masculine, pronounced "tvoy"); твоя (feminine, pronounced "tvo-yah"); твоё (neuter, pronounced "tvo-yo"), and твои (plural, pronounced "tvo-ee"). "Our" (Мы) is наш (masculine, pronounced "nash," not like "Nashville" but rhymes with "wash"); наша (feminine, pronounced "nasha"); наше (neuter, pronounced "nashyeh"), and наши (plural, pronounced "nashee"). "Your" (formal Вы) is ваш (masculine, pronounced "vash", rhymes with "wash"); ваша (feminine, pronounced "vasha"); ваше (neuter, pronounced "vash-yeh"), and ваши (plural, pronounced "vashee"). A memory aid is "your car is a washing machine." Picture opening the hood of a car and finding a washing machine where the engine should be. "Your car" is ваша машина (sounds like "washing machine").

Adjective endings (nominative case) Russian adjectives agree with their nouns in gender, number, and case. Here we will learn the adjective endings for gender and number (singular vs. plural). (Cases will be later.) The dictionary form of adjectives end in ый (pronounced "ee"). This is the ending with masculine nouns. E.g., "new pencil" is новый карандаш (pronounced "no-vee karandash"). With feminine nouns, the adjective ends in ая. E.g., "new car" is новая машина (pronounced "no-vah-yah masheena"). With neuter nouns, the adjective ends in ое. E.g., "new dress" is новое платье (pronounced "no-vo-yeh plat-yeh"). As a memory aid, think of "oh yeah." With plural nouns, the adjective ends in ые. E.g., "new students" is новые студенты (pronounced "no-vih-yeh studentih"). As a memory aid, think of plural as one masculine and one neuter object. Take the first letter from the masculine ending (ы) and the second letter from the neuter ending (е) and you get ые. Adjectives with "soft endings" (й or ь) have the same second letter in their' endings, but the first letter of the endings change. The masculine ending ый becomes ий, the feminine ending ая becomes яя, the neuter ending ое becomes ее (like the "yeah-yeah" chorus of 1965 Beatles songs), and the plural ending ые becomes ие (maintaining the memory aid that you take a masculine object and a neuter object to get two objects).

5- and 7-letter spelling rules Recall that with plurals, after the letters г, ж, к, х, ч, ш, and щ, you use и, not ы. This 7-letter spelling rule also applies to adjectives. As a memory aid, ч, ш, and щ are together in the alphabet. The 5-letter spelling rule is that after the letters ж, ц, ч, ш, and щ, don't write an unstressed o, but instead write e. As a memory aid, ц, ч, ш, and щ are together in the alphabet.

"What?" and "which?" Что (pronounced "shto," not "chto") and какой (pronounced "kokoy") both mean "what." As a loose rule, какой means "which." The correct rule is that if a noun follows "what," use какой. If no noun follows "what," use что. As a memory aid, the following noun's gender and number change какой. Какой precedes masculine nouns, какая precedes feminine nouns, какое precedes neuter nouns, and какие precedes plural nouns. Because что is never followed by a noun, it never changes form. If you just want to "get by," always use что for "what."

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Russian/Lesson 3

25

Showing Ownership In English, "my" and "I have" are different, just as "your" and "you have" are different. Russian makes a similar distinction—but it's more complicated. First, the pronoun is in the genitive case (меня, тебя etc.), which indicates possession/ownership. The preposition used with the genitive pronouns to indicate ownership is У (pronounced "oo"), meaning roughly "with". The forms are as follows: "I have": У меня (pronounced "oo meen-yah", meaning roughly "with me") "You have" (informal): У тебя (pronounced "oo teeb-yah", meaning roughly "with you") "You have" (formal): у вас (pronounced "oo vas") "He has": у его (pronounced "oo ye-vo", meaning "with him") "She has": у ее (pronounced "oo ye-yo", meaning "with her") "We have": у нас (pronounced "oo nas", meaning "with us") "They have": у их (pronounced "oo eech", meaning "with them") Thus the question "У тебя карандаш?" when interpreted rather literally, means "With you is a pencil?" It is easy to see how this can be correctly interpreted as "Do you have a pencil (with you)?" or even just "Do you own a pencil?" These three phrases are sometimes followed by есть (pronounced "yehst", meaning "is"). Есть questions the existance of something, e.g., У вас есть синий костюм? ("Do you have a blue suit?").

Verb conjugation, present tense In English we say, "I study," "you study," "he studies," "she studies," "we study," "they study." Note that some pronouns use "study," while other pronouns use "studies." "Verb conjugation" is how verbs change with pronouns. English has simple two-form verb conjugation for the present tense. Russian verbs conjugate in six forms, for "I", "you (singular and informal)", "he" and "she", "we", "you (plural and formal singular)" and "they". In addition, Russian verbs conjugate in either of two ways. In other words, some verbs are first conjugation, when others are second conjugation. All verbs have an infinitive form, which is listed in dictionaries. Typically this form ends in ть. First-conjugation verbs usually end in ать. These verbs conjugate by dropping the ть and replacing it with the following endings: я

"I"

ю or у

ты

"you" (informal) ешь or ёшь

чит'аю ("read," pronounced "cheet-a-you")

жив'у ("live," pronounced "zheevoo")

чит'аешь ("read," pronounced "cheet-a-yesh") живёшь ("live," pronounced "zheevyosh")

он/она "he," "she"

ет or ёт

чит'ает ("reads," pronounced "cheet-a-yet")

живёт ("live," pronounced "zheevyot")

мы

"we"

ем or ём

чит'аем ("read," pronounced "cheet-a-yem")

живём ("live," pronounced "zheevyom")

вы

"you" (formal)

ете or ёте

чит'аете ("read," pronounced "cheet-a-yehta")

живёте ("live," pronounced "zheevyota")

они

"they"

ют or ут

чит'ают ("read," pronounced "cheet-a-yout")

жив'ут ("live," pronounced "zheevoot")

Second-conjugation verbs usually end in ить. These verbs conjugate by dropping the ть and replacing it with the following endings:

Russian/Lesson 3

26

я

"I"

ю

говор'ю ("talk," pronounced "govor-you")

ты

"you" (informal) ишь говор'ишь ("talk," pronounced "govor-eesh")

он/она "he," "she"

ит

говор'ит ("talks," pronounced "govor-eet")

мы

"we"

им

говор'им ("talk," pronounced "govor-eem")

вы

"you" (formal)

ите

говор'ите ("talk," pronounced "govor-eetyeh")

они

"they"

ят

говор'ят ("talk," pronounced "govor-yat")

Verb conjugation, past tense Past tense verbs are somewhat simpler. They conjugate with the gender (or number) of the pronoun. Thus, "I understood" changes depending on whether the speaker is a man or a woman. But the verb is the same for "he understood" or for "I understood," where the speaker is a man. "We understood" and "they understood" are the same. To form a past tense verb, drop the ть and add л (pronounced "l") for masculine pronouns ("I," "you," "he"), ла (pronounced "la") for feminine pronouns ("I," "you," "she"), and ли (pronounced "lee") for plural pronouns (мы, они, "we," "they"). (Neuter subjects can't talk.) Masculine pronoun "л"

понимал ("understood," pronounced "poneemal")

Feminine pronoun

"ла" понимала ("understood," pronounced "poneemala")

Plural pronoun

"ли" понимали ("understood," pronounced "poneemalee")

Verb conjugation, future tense Russian future tense is incredibly more complex in meaning than English future tense. Russian future tense also contains information pertaining to the [aspect[1]] of the verb. Imperfective Aspect The simplest, and imperfective aspect of a verb can be attained by the use of the verb "будь." By placing the correct form of "будь," in front of a Russian infinitive, you can create a verb in imperfective future tense. будь roughly means "will" я бу́ду

мы бу́дем

ты бу́дешь

вы бу́дете

он/она́/оно́ бу́дет они́ бу́дут

Can you decipher these? • Я буду играть. • Ты будешь говорить. As an FYI, the imperfective aspect in Russian refers to a habitual action that we would not go out of our way to delineate. While "Я играю в игру" (I am playing the game) shows current action in a way not unlike Еnglish, "Я играла в игру" (I played-feminine the game) relates a habitual action to the playing of the game in the past. English leaves this ambiguous.

Russian/Lesson 3

Prepositional case adjectives Recall that the prepositional case is used when the object of a sentence is a location. Earlier you learned how to modify nouns (usually by adding е). Russian adjectives must agree with their following noun in gender, number, and case. With a masculine noun in the prepositional case, a preceding adjective usually ends in ом. The ending is ем for the 5-letter spelling rule, and for soft-ending (й or ь) adjectives. With a feminine noun in the prepositional case, a preceding adjective usually ends in ой (pronounced "oy"). The ending is ей (pronounced ("yee") for the 5-letter spelling rule, and for soft-ending (й or ь) adjectives.

Prepositional case plural adjectives and nouns With a plural noun in the prepositional case, a preceding adjective usually ends in ых (pronounced "ach"). The ending is их (pronounced ("yach") for the 7-letter spelling rule, and for soft-ending (й or ь) adjectives. Plural nouns in the prepositional case usually end in ах (pronounced "ach"). The ending is ях (pronounced ("yach") for soft-ending (й or ь) nouns.

Prepositional case personal pronouns The personal pronouns change (considerably!) in the prepositional case. Я ("I") becomes обо мне (pronounced "obo mnyeh"). Ты ("you" informal) becomes о тебе (pronounced "o tyehbyeh"). Он ("he") becomes о нём (pronounced "o nyom"). Она ("she") becomes о ней (pronounced "o nyee"). Мы ("we") becomes о нас (pronounced "o nas"). Вы ("you" formal) becomes о вас (pronounced "o vas"). Они ("they") becomes о них (pronounced "o neech").

Prepositional case possessive pronouns If the object possessed is masculine or neuter, use the following possessive pronouns: моём ("my"), твоём ("your" informal), нашем ("our'), вашем ("your" formal), чьём ("whose?"), этом ("this"). If the object possessed is feminine, use the following possessive pronouns: моей ("my"), твоей ("your" informal), нашей ("our'), вашей ("your" formal), чьей ("whose?"), этой ("this"). If the objects possessed are plural, use the following possessive pronouns: моих ("my"), твоих ("your" informal), наших ("our'), ваших ("your" formal), чьих ("whose?"), этих ("this"). (Russian schools teach all that to second-graders! Now you understand why Ronald Reagan called the Soviet Union the "evil empire"!)

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Russian/Lesson 3

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Prepositional case question words Some question words change in the prepositional case. Что ("what," pronounced "shto") changes to о чём (pronounced "o chyom"). Кто ("who," pronounced "kto") changes to о ком.

Conjunctions: "and," "yes but," and "but" Let's do something simpler. И (pronounced "ee") means "and." А (pronounced "ah") means "yes, but." Но (pronounced "no") means "but."

Reflexive verbs In English we add "self" to a pronoun to indicate reflexive action. E.g., "I wash myself" is different from "I wash my dog." In Russian, reflexive action is in the verb, not in the pronoun. E.g., a Russian would say something like "I washself." This reflexive action is indicated by the suffix ся added to the verb, if the verb ends in a consonant. But if the verb ends in a vowel you instead add сь. Note that the former adds a syllable but the latter doesn't! The verb учиться means "study" (pronounced "oo-cheet-syah"). The verb conjugates: я

"I"

учусь (pronounced "oochoos")

ты

"you" (informal) учишься (pronounced "oocheesh-syah")

он/она "he," "she"

учится (pronounced "oocheet-syah")

мы

"we"

учимся (pronounced "oocheem-syah")

вы

"you" (formal)

учитесь (pronounced "oocheetyes")

они

"they"

учатся (pronounced "oochat-syah")

Three words for "study" Russia has three words that translate to "study." (You can imagine that Russians must study three times harder than Americans to learn language skills!) Учиться (pronounced "oo-cheet-syah") usually refers to where you go to school, e.g., "I go to Harvard University." As a memory aid, picture that Russians students cheat. Изучать (pronounced "ee-zoo-chat") usually refers to the subject you study, e.g., "I study physics." As a memory aid, think that the zoo is where you study subjects such as monkeys, elephants, etc. заниматься (pronounced "zan-ee-mat-syah") usually refers to doing homework, e.g., "I'm studying at the library." As a memory aid, think that your "zany mother makes you do your homework." There is also a fourth verb, готовиться (perf. подготовиться), which means to study for something, e.g. an exam. This is used with the preposition к + dative case. Например: Я готовлюсь к экзамену по русскому языку.

Russian/Lesson 3

Two words for "also" Russian has two words that translate to "also." Тоже (pronounced "to-zheh") means that two people are doing the same thing (e.g., "I'm a student and my sister is also a student"). Также (pronounced "takzhe") means that one person does two different things (e.g., "I'm a student and I also work part-time"). As a memory aid, picture that Emperor Tojo of Japan is also the emperor of Russia. He has a reclusive brother Takzhe who only does things by himself.

Going by foot, by car, and going regularly Russian has three words that translate to "going." Идти (pronounced "eed-tee") means to go by foot. As a memory aid, think the conjugation он идёт ("he walks," pronounced "on eed-dyot") which sounds like "he's an idiot to walk (with the traffic so dangerous)." ехать (pronounced "ee-hot") means to go by car, bus, etc. Note that conjugations are еду, едешь, едет, едем, едете, едут—none have the х! ходить (pronounced "hod-deet") means to go back and forth habitually, e.g., "I go to school every day." As a memory aid, think of hod carriers going back and forth up and down ladders (a hod carrier carries morter to a bricklayer).

Neccessity and freedom "I have to" translates to я должен (pronounced "dol-zhen," sort of like "dolphin")—if the subject is masculine! If the subject is feminine, it's должна. If the subject is neuter, it's должно. If the subject is plural, it's должны. Remember that "have to" is an adjective, not a verb! Don't try to conjugate it as a verb. The opposite of "have to" is freedom. E.g., "I'm free this evening" means there's nothing you have to do. The adjectives are свободен (masculine, pronounced "sva-bod-den"), свободна (feminine, pronounced "sva-bod-na"), свободно (neuter, pronounced "sva-bod-no") and свободны (plural, pronounced "sva-bod-nih"). Note that вы ("you" formal, and "y'all") uses the plural forms, regardless of the gender of the person you're addressing. Note that кто ("who") uses the masculine form, regardless of the gender of the person you're asking about Lesson 4 >>

References [1] http:/ / en. wikipedia. org/ wiki/ Grammatical_aspect

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Russian/Lesson 4

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Russian/Lesson 4 Russian language · Русский язык Lessons

Introduction · Alphabet · Lesson 1 · Lesson 2 · Lesson 3 · Lesson 4 · Lesson 5

Reference

Numbers · Declensions · Adjectives · Conjugations · Prepositions · Verbal Aspect · Interrogative Pronouns · Personal Prn. · Possessive Prn. · Cursive

(view) ( edit [1] )

Appendices Appendix · Alphabet · Internet · Cheat Sheet

Russian Mental Picture Dictionary These memory aids aren't true! They're nonsense made up to help you remember the meanings of Russian words. Russian word

Part of speech English meaning

Pronunciation

А А

Yes but…

Ah

noun

Air

Aveea

Авиабилет

noun

Airplane ticket

Aveea beelyet

Автор

noun

Author

Avtor

Actor

Aktyehr

Alphabet

Alfaveet

America

Amyehreeka

noun

American man

Amyehreekanyets

noun

American woman

Amyehreekanka

Авиа Avia aerobics shoes have air soles.

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Актер

noun

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Алфавит

noun

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Америка

noun

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Американец American men are nuts. Американка

When a Russian girl names Anya misbehaves, her mother calls her "Anka." Англия

noun

England

Angleeya

Английский

noun

English (language)

Angleeskee

English people use angled skis. That's why they're such bad skiers.

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31

Англичанин

noun

Englishman

Angleechaneen

"Channing" is one of those names that only an Englishman would name his son. An eccentric English angler (fisherman) named his son "Angle Channing." Англичанка

noun

Englishwoman

Angleechanka

Анкета

noun

Questionnaire

Ankyehta

Russian questionnaires come with an answer kit.

Б Балерина

noun

Ballerina

Ballyehreena

A cognate (same word in Russian and English) Банан

noun

Banana

Banan

Банджо

noun

Banjo

Bandzho

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). белый

adjective

White

Byehlee

Билет

noun

Ticket

Beelyeht

A billet is a short letter or ticket ordering a private home to provide lodging and food to a soldier. Бизнесмен

noun

Businessman

Beezneesmyehn

Бизнесменка

noun

Businesswoman

Beezneesmyehnka

Blouse

Bloozka

Men's shoes

Boteenkee

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Блузка

noun

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Ботинки

noun (plural)

Russian men remember their moms calling their cute little boots "booteenkees." Брюки Britches.

В

noun (plural)

Pants

Bryoukee

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В, Во

In

Veh, Vo

"Во" is used for words beginning with two consonants if the first consonant is В or Ф. Варежки

noun (plural)

Mittens

Varyehzhkee

You (formal or plural)

Vee

Your (formal or plural, feminine)

Vasha

Russian mittens make you sing far off key. Вы

pronoun

Ваша

Ваша машина means "your car" is a washing machine. Think of a car with a washing machine where the engine should be. Введение

Introduction

Vvehdyehneeyeh

Don't confuse with До свидания (good-bye, dos veedaneeyah). Велосипед

noun

Bicycle

Veloseepyehd

Version

Verseeyah

Visa

Veeza

Hair

Volosih

A cognate (same word in Russian and French). Версия

noun

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Виза

noun

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Волосы

noun

Russians like big shiny hair, so they use shampoo that gives volume and polish. Вот

Here, here is

Vot

All, everything, that's all

Vsyo

Show something to someone. Всё That's all, the show's over.

Г Галстук

noun

Necktie

Galstook

Газета

noun

Newspaper

Gazyehta

Don't confuse with журнал (magazine, zhoornal). A person who writes a newspapers and a person who writes a magazine are both a журналист (zhoornalist). In other words, "journalist" is a more prestigious job title because magazines are more prestigious, so newspaper writers want to be called "journalist" even though they should be called a "gazettist." Где

Where

G'dyeh

Australians are always late. The Australian greeting "G'day" doesn't mean "Good day," it means "Where were you?" Гитара

noun

Guitar

Geetara

Head

Gollova

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Голова

noun

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33

In A Clockwork Orange, Anthony Burgess changed this to "gulliver," as in Gulliver's Travels, as in "we kicked him in the gulliver." Think of a picture of Gulliver tied down by the Lilliputians, with the little people dancing around his head. Голос

noun

Voice

Golloss

City

Gorod

Russians have glossy voices. That's why they can make those sliding R's. Город

noun

Novgorod is a city between Moscow and St. Petersburg. It means "new city." Грамматика

noun

Grammar

Grammateeka

noun

Dirt

Gryahz

adjective

Dirty

Gryahznee

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Грязь Grass grows in dirt. Грязный

Д Да

Yes

Da

Давайте

Let's

Davaytyeh

Declaration

Deklaratseeyah

It's divine to do this together! Декларация

noun

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Для

For

Dlyah

Jeans

Jeensih

Ask the dealer for anything you want. Джинсы

noun

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Диалог

noun

Dialogue

Deealog

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Дипломат

noun

Diplomat

Deeplomat

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Доброе утро

Good morning

Dobroyeh utro

Добрый день

Good afternoon

Dobreey dyehn

Добрый вечер

Good evening

Dobreey vyehchyehr

"Dobry den" is Russian for "hello." Note that "good morning" rhymes, ending in o's. The other "good's" end in "ee." Документ

noun

Document

Dokoomyehnt

A cognate (same word in Russian and English). Дом

noun

House

Dom

Russian/Lesson 4

34

Дома

adverb

До свидaния

At home

Doma

Good-bye

Do sveedahneeyah

Drama

Dramah

"Sweet on ya" Драма

noun

A cognate (same word in Russian and English).

Е Есть

verb

To eat; is; there is, there are

Yehst

That eat and is are homonyms suggests that "to be" and "to eat" are the same to a Russian. Or perhaps "you are what you eat"? Ещё

Still; yet; else; also; more; another

Yehschyo

Ешё looks like "ewe." Picture a female sheep, standing still. Also picture another female sheep. And picture more female sheep—a whole flock of ewes.

Ж Жаба

noun

Toad (Bufo sp.)

Zhaba

Жена

noun

Wife

Zhena

Женщина

noun

Woman

Zhensheena

Russian women use hair color that gives them sheen. Also note that жен and жить are the start of many words about women and living, so think of Old World gender roles where a woman's place was in the home. Живой

adjective

Alive, lively, active

zheevoi

Live (e.g. where you live)

Zheet

Picture a lively boy, who lives in cottage in the French countryside. Жить

verb

A cognate with the French word "gîte," pronounced "zheet," which is a country cottage you rent by the week. When asking where a Russian lives, picture that he or she rents a cottage in the French countryside. Remember that Жить conjugates by changing the т to в, then the next vowel is ё: я живу, ты живёшь, он/она живёт, мы живём, вы живёте, они живут. Жук

noun

Bug, beetle

Zhook

Журнал

noun

Magazine

Zhoornal

Cognate with "journal." Don't confuse with Газета (newspaper).

З

Russian/Lesson 4

35

Задание

noun

Task, assignment

Zadaneeyeh

noun

Recording

Zapees

Здесь

Here

Zdyes

Здравствуйте

Greetings (formal)

Zdrastvooytye

Здравствуй

Greetings (informal)

Zdrastvooy

So, then

Znacheet

"Is done yet?" Запись

Значит

particle

Значить

v.impfv. To mean, signify

Znacheet

"So" and "meaning" are homonyms. зовут

noun

Name

Zovoot

Зуб

noun

Tooth

Zoob

И И

And

Ee

Игра

noun

Game, acting Eegra

Имя

noun

First name

Eemyah

Институт

noun

Institute

Eensteetoot

A cognate (same word in Russian and English).

Л лесной

adjective

Forest

Lesnoy

Russians walk silently in forests. They make less noise than Americans.

С

Russian/Lesson 4

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Стол

noun

Table

Stol

Скрипка

noun

Violin

Scripka

When Russians play violin it screeps or screeches.

(Russian chairs are Стул, stool)

Т Твой

Your (informal)

Товарищ n. Comrade

Tvoy

Tovarishch

Russian/Lesson 5 Russian language · Русский язык Lessons

Introduction · Alphabet · Lesson 1 · Lesson 2 · Lesson 3 · Lesson 4 · Lesson 5

Reference

Numbers · Declensions · Adjectives · Conjugations · Prepositions · Verbal Aspect · Interrogative Pronouns · Personal Prn. · Possessive Prn. · Cursive

Appendices Appendix · Alphabet · Internet · Cheat Sheet

Словарь (Vocabulary) слова́рь - vocabulary; dictionary : текст - text э́то - this; this is / these are он - he Ва́ся Петро́в - Vasya Petrov (short for Васи́лий - Vasily) ру́сский - Russian (male) (noun and adjective) живёт - lives; жить to live Москва́ - (Moskva) Moscow ему́ - to him (dative case) ему 12 (двенадцать) лет - he is 12 years old лет - years (genitive plural); год - year у́чится - (he, she) studies; учи́ться to study шко́ла - school в - in, at в шко́ле - at school (prepositional case) в шко́лу - to school (accusative case) хоте́ть - to want, хо́чет - wants

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Russian/Lesson 5 стать - to become (+ instrumental case) лётчик - pilot, flyer хорошо́ - well есть - is, have па́па - dad, оте́ц - father ма́ма - mum, мать - mother ста́рший - elder, older сестра́ - sister мла́дший - younger брат - brother Ви́тя - Vitya (short for Ви́ктор - Victor) Ле́на - Lena (short for Еле́на - Yelena) их - their, theirs дом - house недалеко́ - not far, near от - from ходи́ть - to walk, to go, хо́дит - walks, goes пешко́м - on foot люби́ть - love, like, лю́бит - loves, likes игра́ть - to play футбо́л - football, soccer ры́ба - fish лови́ть ры́бу - to fish, (literally: to catch fish) мно́го - many, much, a lot (of) (+ genitive) друг - friend, друзья friends Ва́син (m), Ва́сина (f) - Vasya's программи́ст - programmer рабо́́тать - to work, рабо́́тает - (he/she) works большо́й - big; large о́фис - office иностра́нный - foreign фи́рма - firm учи́тель (m), учи́тельница (f) - teacher учи́тельница англи́йского языка́ (genitive case) - English teacher (f) англи́йский - English (adjective) язы́к - language; tongue сейча́с - now университе́т - University реши́ть (to decide)

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Russian/Lesson 5 реши́л (decided - male singular), реши́ла (decided - female singular), реши́ли (decided - plural) журнали́ст (m), журнали́стка (f) - journalist ещё - still ма́ленький - little, small но - but о́чень - very рисова́ть (to draw), рису́ет (he/she draws)

Текст (Text) Э́то Ва́ся Петро́в. Он ру́сский. Он живёт в Москве́. Ему́ 12 лет. Он у́чится в шко́ле. Он хо́чет стать лётчиком. Он у́чится хорошо́. У Ва́си есть па́па и ма́ма, ста́ршая сестра́ Ле́на и мла́дший брат Ви́тя. Их дом недалеко́ от шко́лы и Ва́ся хо́дит в шко́лу пешко́м. Ва́ся лю́бит игра́ть в футбо́л и лови́ть ры́бу. У Ва́си мно́го друзе́й. Ва́син па́па - программи́ст. Он рабо́тает в большо́м о́фисе иностра́нной фи́рмы. Ва́сина ма́ма - учи́тельница англи́йского языка́ в шко́ле. Ле́на сейча́с у́чится в университе́те. Она́ реши́ла стать журнали́сткой. Ви́тя ещё ма́ленький, но он о́чень хорошо́ рису́ет.

Counting years: 1 год (nominative), 2 года, 3 года 4 года (genitive singular) 5 лет, 6 лет ... 20 лет (genitive plural) 21 год (nominative), 22 года, 23 года 24 года 25 лет, 26 лет ... 30 лет (genitive plural) ...

Saying: I have, you have, etc. У меня есть... У тебя есть... У него есть... У неё есть... У нас есть... У вас есть... У них есть...

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Russian/Numbers

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Russian/Numbers Russian language · Русский язык Lessons

Introduction · Alphabet · Lesson 1 · Lesson 2 · Lesson 3 · Lesson 4 · Lesson 5

Reference

Numbers · Declensions · Adjectives · Conjugations · Prepositions · Verbal Aspect · Interrogative Pronouns · Personal Prn. · Possessive Prn. · Cursive

Appendices Appendix · Alphabet · Internet · Cheat Sheet

Cardinal numbers 0 ноль 1. один, одна, одно 2. два, две 3. три 4. четыре 5. пять 6. шесть 7. семь 8. восемь 9. девять 10. десять 11. одиннадцать 12. двенадцать 13. тринадцать 14. четырнадцать 15. пятнадцать 16. шестнадцать 17. семнадцать 18. восемнадцать 19. девятнадцать 20. двадцать 21. двадцать один 22. двадцать два 30 тридцать 40 сорок 50 пятьдесят 60 шестьдесят 70 семьдесят 80 восемьдесят 90 девяносто 100 сто 101 сто один 110 сто десять 133 сто тридцать три

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Russian/Numbers 200 двести 300 триста 400 четыреста 500 пятьсот 600 шестьсот 700 семьсот 800 восемьсот 900 девятьсот 1,000 тысяча 1,000,000 один миллион 2,000,000 два миллиона 5,000,000 пять миллионов 1,000,000,000 один миллиард 2,000,000,000 два миллиарда

Use of numerals in context In English (and in many other Indo-European languages) the items being counted by a numeral are found following the numeral, and in the plural form. In Russian, the syntax is somewhat more complex. The case of the item must first be considered. If the item needs to be in the nominative or inanimate accusative case, use the following rule. The numeral один (1) should be used in the proper form to indicate gender (and, number, believe it or not). For example: один мальчик (one boy), одна девушка (one girl), одно животное (one animal), одни джинсы (one [pair of] jeans). The plural form of the numeral (1) is a bit of an oddity, but its use will become clear with time. Following a form of один should come the item at hand in the nominative or inanimate accusative case, as appropriate. The numerals два (or две), три, and четыре all require the following item to be presented in the genitive singular form. The numeral два has two forms: два for masculine and neuter items and две for feminine items. After the numeral два, each numeral has only a single form. See for example: две девушки (two girls), три кошки (three cats), четыре мальчика (four boys). The numerals пять (5) through двадцать (20) require their attached items in the genitive plural forms, as in these examples: пять девушек (five girls), десять копеек (ten kopeks), шестнадцать рублей (sixteen rubles). Numerals larger than twenty follow the above rules using the last digit. Think of numerals ending in zero as ending in ten. For example: тридцать три рюмки (thirty-three shot glasses), сорок один год (forty-one years), шестьдесят девять слов (sixty-nine words). When the items at hand belong not in the nominative or inanimate accusative case, the numerals themselves must be declined in addition to the declension of the items following them. This topic shall be discussed here later. For now, be glad that these forms are relatively uncommon. Examples follow: Я видел двух друзей (I saw two friends), Ты не съела ни одной штуки (You didn't eat a single piece). In short, for nominative (and inanimate accusative) items, use the following rule to select the proper form of the item: 1 -> nominative 2, 3, 4 -> genitive singular 5 and more -> genitive plural

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Russian/Numbers

A few more examples • • • • • • •

один час два часа пять часов двадцать один час двадцать два часа двадцать три часа двадцать четыре часа

• • • • • • • •

один год два года три года четыре года пять лет пятьдесят один год пятьдесят два года пятьдесят пять лет

• одна минута • • • • • • • • •

две минуты три минуты четыре минуты пять минут шесть минут двадцать одна минута тридцать две минуты тридцать три минуты сорок пять минут

Ordinal numbers Ordinal numerals in Russian are relatively easy to deal with. They all decline like adjectives. For example: Только что фотографировала восемнадцатую девушку (She just photographed the eighteenth girl). 1. первый, первая, первое 2. второй, вторая, второе 3. третий, третья, третье 4. четвёртый 5. пятый 6. шестой 7. седьмой 8. восьмой 9. девятый 10. десятый 11. одиннадцатый 12. двенадцатый 13. тринадцатый 14. четырнадцатый 15. пятнадцатый 16. шестнадцатый

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Russian/Numbers 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22.

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семнадцатый восемнадцатый девятнадцатый двадцатый двадцать первый двадцать второй

30th тридцатый 40th сороковой 100th сотый 1000th тысячный 10000th десятитысячный 1000000th миллионный

Russian/Appendix/Tables of declension Russian language · Русский язык Lessons

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Reference

Numbers · Declensions · Adjectives · Conjugations · Prepositions · Verbal Aspect · Interrogative Pronouns · Personal Prn. · Possessive Prn. · Cursive

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Mnemonics Ned Gets Drunk And I Pay

Animate versus Inanimate The distinction between animate and inanimate is particularly important for the accusative case. In the animate case the accusative has the same form as the genitive. In the inanimate case it typically looks like the nominative.

Masculine nouns Masculine Russian nouns generally end in a consonant (hard ending), -й, or a soft sign (-ь) (soft endings). The exceptions are generally animate: both diminutive forms of forenames (Алёша, Миша), and those nouns referring to males, such as папа and дедушка, most often ending in -а. These are declined as if feminine, but with masculine adjective and verb agreement. This is the conjugation of a masculine, inanimate, hard noun in the singular and plural:

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Singular

Plural

Nominative

университет

университеты

Genitive

университета

университетов

Dative

университету

университетам

Accusative

университет

университеты

Instrumental

университетом университетами

Prepositional (or: Locative) университете

университетах

First declension (masculine nouns ending with nothing and neuter nouns ending with -о/-е) little house case

Russian name

Nom

имени́тельный кто/что это?

ма́ленький дом

Gen

роди́тельный

нет кого́/чего́?

ма́ленького до́ма

Dat

да́тельный

дава́ть кому́/чему́?

ма́ленькому до́му

вини́ть кого́,что́?

ма́ленький дом ма́ленького ма́льчика (boy)

Acc вини́тельный anim.

answer to:

Inst

твори́тельный горди́ться кем/чем?

Prep

предло́жный

little house

ма́леньким до́мом

говори́ть о ком/о чём? о ма́леньком до́ме

Second Declension (feminine nouns ending with -а and masculine nouns ending with -я) my apartment N (имени́тельный, кто/что это?) моя́ кварти́ра G (роди́тельный, нет кого́/чего́?) мое́й кварти́ры D (да́тельный, дава́ть кому́/чему́?) мое́й кварти́ре A (вини́тельный, вини́ть кого́/что́?) мою́ соба́ку (dog), мою́ кварти́ру I (твори́тельный, горди́ться кем/чем?) мое́й кварти́рой P (предло́жный, говори́ть о ком/о чём?) о мое́й кварти́ре

Third Declension (feminine nouns ending with -ь and neuter nouns ending with -я) white door N (имени́тельный, кто́/что́ это?) бе́лая дверь G (роди́тельный, нет кого́/чего́?) бе́лой две́ри D (да́тельный, дава́ть кому́/чему́?) бе́лой две́ри A (вини́тельный, вини́ть кого́/что́?) бе́лую ло́шадь (horse f.), бе́лую дверь I (твори́тельный, горди́ться кем/чем?) бе́лой две́рью L (предло́жный, говори́ть о ко́м/о чё́м?) о бе́лой две́ри

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Fourth Declension (Plural only nouns and all the above nouns in plural form) white tables (singular form: white table, белый стол) N (имени́тельный, кто́/что́ это?) бе́лые столы́ G (роди́тельный, нет кого́/чего́?) бе́лых столо́в D (да́тельный, дава́ть кому́/чему́?) бе́лым стола́м A (вини́тельный, вини́ть кого́/что́?) озорны́х ма́льчиков (naughty boys), бе́лые столы́ I (твори́тельный, горди́ться кем/чем?) бе́лыми стола́ми L (предло́жный, говори́ть о ко́м/о чём?) о бе́лых стола́х