Here are 5 more vocabulary words:
- хоккеист/ка (hokkee-ist-ka) - ice-hockey player
- шахматистка (sheck-ma-tist-ka) - chess player
- или (ill-ee) - or
- поэт (po-et) - male poet / поэтесса (poet-essa) - female poet
- немного (nem-nogo) - a little
Have fun!
Friday, January 4, 2008
Vobabulary
Thursday, January 3, 2008
OK maybe not everyone in the world is as obsessed as I am but...
One tool I found especially helpful when first learning Russian was The Keyboard Tzar! It's a super fabulous typing tutor that you can download and use to learn the Cyrillic keyboard. Doesn't sound like something you would enjoy? What if I told you it was so easy! Trust me, play around for a couple of hours and you would be surprised at how fast you can learn to type in Russian (especially if you are already a good typist).
To help you learn, you can order really inexpensive stickers for your keyboard. I am talking like under a dollar on eBay!! They're clear so you just stick 'em over top of your English keys.
If you are going to go this far, you may also need to make sure your computer understands Russian, so it can display the text...among other things. This is called russifying your computer and is not as hard as it sounds.
To help you learn, you can order really inexpensive stickers for your keyboard. I am talking like under a dollar on eBay!! They're clear so you just stick 'em over top of your English keys.
If you are going to go this far, you may also need to make sure your computer understands Russian, so it can display the text...among other things. This is called russifying your computer and is not as hard as it sounds.
Dialogue
Лара: "Здравствйте. Меня зовут Лара, а вас?"
Марк: "Добрый день Лара. Меня зовут Марк, очень приятно!"
Лара: "Очень приятно."Марк: "Кто это?"
Лара: "Это президент."
Марк: "Это английский президент?"
Лара: "Нет, русский президент."
Марк: "Как его зовут?"
Лара: "Его зовут Владамир Путин."
Марк: "До свидания Лара."
Лара: "До свидания Марк!"
Personal Pronouns
- Меня - Me
- Тебя - You (singular, familiar)
- Его - Him
- Её - Her
- Вас - You (formal, plural)
- Нас - Us
- Их -Them
Vocabulary
Here are 5 more words! Already you know so many, check out the Master Vocabulary list if you don't believe me.
студент/ка (stoo-di-ant - ka) - student
танцор (tants-er) - male dancer
теннисист/ка (ten-u-sist-ka) - tennis player
турист/ка (tour-ist-ka) - tourist
футболист/ка (foot-bol-ist-ka) - soccer player
Again, keep in mind that for most professions you can use the masculine version of the word to describe both males and females. Using the feminine version is less respectful to females in the profession.
Keep studying your vocabulary!
студент/ка (stoo-di-ant - ka) - student
танцор (tants-er) - male dancer
теннисист/ка (ten-u-sist-ka) - tennis player
турист/ка (tour-ist-ka) - tourist
футболист/ка (foot-bol-ist-ka) - soccer player
Again, keep in mind that for most professions you can use the masculine version of the word to describe both males and females. Using the feminine version is less respectful to females in the profession.
Keep studying your vocabulary!
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Review 1
Now that you have learned a few things in Russian, and are starting to understand the way it works, it is a good idea to go back and review the things you have already learned. So far we have covered;
1. How to ask who someone is when you don't know their name, and when you know the person's name but want to know more about them/their profession.
2. How to ask and answer yes and no questions about topics like professions, nationality, and quality.
3. Ask someones name using formal and informal address.
4. How to respond to an introduction; "очень приятно".
5. All about Russian names and the difference between masculine and feminine names.
6. How to greet people formally and informally at different times of day.
7. How to say good-bye formally and informally, also wish someone good night.
8. Inquire informally (at your own risk) how someone is doing and reply when someone has asked you.
If you can't do any of these off the top of your head then you should go back and review what we have already learned. You should now be familiar with all of the vocabulary that we have learned as well. Use these words as much as you can in the future and test yourself every so often.
1. How to ask who someone is when you don't know their name, and when you know the person's name but want to know more about them/their profession.
2. How to ask and answer yes and no questions about topics like professions, nationality, and quality.
3. Ask someones name using formal and informal address.
4. How to respond to an introduction; "очень приятно".
5. All about Russian names and the difference between masculine and feminine names.
6. How to greet people formally and informally at different times of day.
7. How to say good-bye formally and informally, also wish someone good night.
8. Inquire informally (at your own risk) how someone is doing and reply when someone has asked you.
If you can't do any of these off the top of your head then you should go back and review what we have already learned. You should now be familiar with all of the vocabulary that we have learned as well. Use these words as much as you can in the future and test yourself every so often.
Vocabulary
Here are 5 more words for you to memorize.
композитор (komp-o-zee-tor)- composer
космонавт (kos-mo-nav)- cosmonaut
пианист /пианистка (pee-an-eest/ka) - pianist
президент (preh-zu-dant) - president
спортсмен /спортсменка (sports-mien/ka) - athlete
композитор (komp-o-zee-tor)- composer
космонавт (kos-mo-nav)- cosmonaut
пианист /пианистка (pee-an-eest/ka) - pianist
президент (preh-zu-dant) - president
спортсмен /спортсменка (sports-mien/ka) - athlete
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Lesson: How are you?
You and Сара have been hanging out quite a bit lately. It seems you both have a flare for discussing famous people and whether or not they are good, very good, some what good(not bad) , or bad. (You have been practicing haven't you?)
However, today when you see her you can tell somethings wrong. Maybe it's because you never seem to ask about her feelings you big jerk! You quickly realize you have been insensitive and not only greet her informally(because she is no longer a stranger), but also ask how she is...
"Здравствуй Сара, как дела?" (zdravstvoo Sara, kak dela?) (Hello Sara, how are you/things?)
You answer "Неплохо". (ne-plohoi) (not bad).
Over the next few weeks you are extra careful to ask Sara how she feels. Her mood seems to change violently from day to day. Give her reply for a week or so using
"очень хорошо (very well)",
"хорошо (well)",
"неплохо (not badly)",
or "плохо (plohoi) (badly)".
Adverbs are the part of speech that answer the question "how?". Notice that these adverbs look very similar to some adjectives that you already learned. The only difference is that there are no masculine or feminine endings on the words. Instead there is and -o ending. Some adverbs can be formed simply by removing the ending and adding "o".
Another way for you to respond in this dialogue is by saying "тоже" (toe-zh) which means "also" but it is implied that you are saying "I am also (whatever mood the other person is in).
I have been told by numerous people that Russians do not throw this question (how are you?)around the way North Americans do. You wouldn't typically ask someone how they were unless you wanted to know all about their current situation.
However, today when you see her you can tell somethings wrong. Maybe it's because you never seem to ask about her feelings you big jerk! You quickly realize you have been insensitive and not only greet her informally(because she is no longer a stranger), but also ask how she is...
"Здравствуй Сара, как дела?" (zdravstvoo Sara, kak dela?) (Hello Sara, how are you/things?)
Хорошо, спасибо!
You answer "Неплохо". (ne-plohoi) (not bad).
Over the next few weeks you are extra careful to ask Sara how she feels. Her mood seems to change violently from day to day. Give her reply for a week or so using
"очень хорошо (very well)",
"хорошо (well)",
"неплохо (not badly)",
or "плохо (plohoi) (badly)".
Adverbs are the part of speech that answer the question "how?". Notice that these adverbs look very similar to some adjectives that you already learned. The only difference is that there are no masculine or feminine endings on the words. Instead there is and -o ending. Some adverbs can be formed simply by removing the ending and adding "o".
Another way for you to respond in this dialogue is by saying "тоже" (toe-zh) which means "also" but it is implied that you are saying "I am also (whatever mood the other person is in).
I have been told by numerous people that Russians do not throw this question (how are you?)around the way North Americans do. You wouldn't typically ask someone how they were unless you wanted to know all about their current situation.
Lesson: Addressing teachers, professors and doctors
Lesson: Asking more about someone's profession.
You are hanging out at Сара's house and looking through her stack of magazines while she is getting ready.
You can make out people's names in the magazines and newspapers but you are not sure why exactly they are famous. One name you have seen a few times is Юрий Гагарин (Yuri Gagarin), you ask "Кто такой Юрий Гогорин?" (kto takoi Yuri Gagarin?) (Who is Yuri Gagarin, as in, tell me more about him).
You can make out people's names in the magazines and newspapers but you are not sure why exactly they are famous. One name you have seen a few times is Юрий Гагарин (Yuri Gagarin), you ask "Кто такой Юрий Гогорин?" (kto takoi Yuri Gagarin?) (Who is Yuri Gagarin, as in, tell me more about him).
She answers: "Юрий Гагарин - это известный русский космонавт". (Yuri Gagarin - eto izvestnee rooski kosmonavt) (Yuri Gagarin, this famous Russian cosmonaut). Notice that all the adjectives in this sentence match the noun. Because the noun "cosmonaut" is masculine, the endings are ый, and ий.
Russian's call astronauts cosmonauts by the way.
The question "Кто такой?", or "Who is?", has a feminine form of "Кто такая?". If we were asking about Анна Павлова the famous Russian ballerina, we would ask "Кто такая Анна Павлова?".
You would only use "Кто такой/Кто такая" when the person's name is included in the question. For any other question where you are asking "who?", you would use "Кто?".
Exercise 1: You now know the words for quite a few professions. Make a list and quiz your friend Sara about them.
Exercise 2: After Sara is bored of the game you pull out a magazine from America and she asks you about the people in it. Try to add in people with Russian, English, American, and Canadian nationalities.
Lesson: Russian patronymic and last names.
The patronymic name is the child's fathers first name in masculine or feminine form. Say that 5 times fast!
For Example, if your name was Петров and your fathers name was Ибан, your full first name and patronymic name would be Петров Ибанович ("son of Ivan"). This is what you would call your self during your adulthood unless you were extremely familiar with someone. If your name was Натадья and your fathers name was Петров, your full first name and patronymic name would be Натадья Петровна ("daughter of Peter"). When giving your name as an adult, you would always use both your full first name (no longer the diminutive) and your patronymic.
The patronymic name, or "отчество", is formed from the father's first name and adding -ович or -евич for males and -овна or -евна for females.
Last names are masculine and feminine so they change slightly if you are a boy or a girl. If Петров Ибанич Павлов had a daughter and a son, their last names would be Павлов (son) and Павлова (daughter). Most last names you would simply add an "a" to the end for the females, however, some last names have an adjective ending (ой, ий, or ый) and therefore would have the feminine adjective ending of "ая".
For Example, if your name was Петров and your fathers name was Ибан, your full first name and patronymic name would be Петров Ибанович ("son of Ivan"). This is what you would call your self during your adulthood unless you were extremely familiar with someone. If your name was Натадья and your fathers name was Петров, your full first name and patronymic name would be Натадья Петровна ("daughter of Peter"). When giving your name as an adult, you would always use both your full first name (no longer the diminutive) and your patronymic.
The patronymic name, or "отчество", is formed from the father's first name and adding -ович or -евич for males and -овна or -евна for females.
Last names are masculine and feminine so they change slightly if you are a boy or a girl. If Петров Ибанич Павлов had a daughter and a son, their last names would be Павлов (son) and Павлова (daughter). Most last names you would simply add an "a" to the end for the females, however, some last names have an adjective ending (ой, ий, or ый) and therefore would have the feminine adjective ending of "ая".
Practice makes perfect
You are still at the party but Иван has disappeared. You can't find him anywhere and now you will have to introduce yourself to people at the party.
You're feeling slightly better after having to throw up for a half hour, but you can't remember what he told you their names were.
You take a deep breath and walk over to one of the girls and ask "Как вас зовут?" (kak vas zobyt?) (How you called?).
You are using the formal version of "you" which is "вас". If this were someone that was younger than you, you would use the informal which is "тебя" (teba) or "Как тебя зовут?".
She smiles and answers "Меня зовут Сара, а вас?" (meenia zovoot Sara, a vas?) (Me called Sara, and you?)
You reply "Меня зовут (and say your name), очень приятно" (meenia zovoot... , oichen pre-yat-no) (Me called ..., nice to meet you).
Now go and introduce yourself to others at the party. Go on, don't be shy!
You're feeling slightly better after having to throw up for a half hour, but you can't remember what he told you their names were.
You take a deep breath and walk over to one of the girls and ask "Как вас зовут?" (kak vas zobyt?) (How you called?).
You are using the formal version of "you" which is "вас". If this were someone that was younger than you, you would use the informal which is "тебя" (teba) or "Как тебя зовут?".
She smiles and answers "Меня зовут Сара, а вас?" (meenia zovoot Sara, a vas?) (Me called Sara, and you?)
You reply "Меня зовут (and say your name), очень приятно" (meenia zovoot... , oichen pre-yat-no) (Me called ..., nice to meet you).
Now go and introduce yourself to others at the party. Go on, don't be shy!
Lesson: Asking someone's name.
Your friend Иван has had it.
Already you are so drunk you can't remember any one's name, let alone what their hobbies are.
You look over at the group of girls and point to one. You ask "Как её зовут?" (kak yeyo zovoot?)
The translation for this is more "How she called?" not "What is her name?"
Иван rolls his eyes but answers "Её зовут Таня" (She called Tania). (yeyo zovoot Tania)
You then point to one of the boys and ask "Как его зовут?" (How he called?). (kak evo zobyt?)
Иван answers you hoping this will be the last of the questions "Его зувот Игор" (He called Игор).
You take another shot of vodka and are finding that you are having troubles remebering anything at all. You decide maybe you should start from the begining so you ask "Как их зовут?" (kak ich zovoot?) (What they called?)
Exercise 1: Answer your own question using the "Их зовут ..." and listing off the names of people at the party.
Exercise 2: Practice asking Иван what individual peoples are names are by using "Как его зовут?" and "Как её зовут?". Answer the question for Иван.
Already you are so drunk you can't remember any one's name, let alone what their hobbies are.
You look over at the group of girls and point to one. You ask "Как её зовут?" (kak yeyo zovoot?)
The translation for this is more "How she called?" not "What is her name?"
Иван rolls his eyes but answers "Её зовут Таня" (She called Tania). (yeyo zovoot Tania)
You then point to one of the boys and ask "Как его зовут?" (How he called?). (kak evo zobyt?)
Иван answers you hoping this will be the last of the questions "Его зувот Игор" (He called Игор).
You take another shot of vodka and are finding that you are having troubles remebering anything at all. You decide maybe you should start from the begining so you ask "Как их зовут?" (kak ich zovoot?) (What they called?)
Exercise 1: Answer your own question using the "Их зовут ..." and listing off the names of people at the party.
Exercise 2: Practice asking Иван what individual peoples are names are by using "Как его зовут?" and "Как её зовут?". Answer the question for Иван.
Practice makes perfect
You go to a party with your friend Иван. He knows you don't know many people so he wants to introduce you to his friends. He is secretly hoping that someone else will start hanging out with you because you are constantly annoying him with your lack of vocabulary.
You walk into the party and everyone is standing around listening to music and talking. Иван see's that you are nervous so he points out each girl and tells you their names. Knowing how inquisitive you are he makes sure to add in their interests and nationalities (mostly he is trying to avoid your embarrassingly English sounding accent).
1. Make a list of 5 girls names and 5 boys names and decide their nationality and their interest. If you are feeling confident make sure to add a word about quality to the sentece. Pretend you are Иван and introduce them.
Example: "Сара - это плохая английская балерина"
By now you have had some vodka and are feeling a little out of sorts. You want to meet these people but you can't quite remember everything he told you about them.
2. Ask questions about the people you are about to meet. Give Ivan's answers and remember you are drunk! So make sure to get a few wrong once and awhile.
Example: "Сара - это хорошая балерина?"
You walk into the party and everyone is standing around listening to music and talking. Иван see's that you are nervous so he points out each girl and tells you their names. Knowing how inquisitive you are he makes sure to add in their interests and nationalities (mostly he is trying to avoid your embarrassingly English sounding accent).
1. Make a list of 5 girls names and 5 boys names and decide their nationality and their interest. If you are feeling confident make sure to add a word about quality to the sentece. Pretend you are Иван and introduce them.
Example: "Сара - это плохая английская балерина"
By now you have had some vodka and are feeling a little out of sorts. You want to meet these people but you can't quite remember everything he told you about them.
2. Ask questions about the people you are about to meet. Give Ivan's answers and remember you are drunk! So make sure to get a few wrong once and awhile.
Example: "Сара - это хорошая балерина?"
...and then give Иван's answers
Example: "Нет, плохая" or "Нет, это плохая балерина".
And so on.
Lesson: Russian first names
Russian first names are masculine and feminine just like adjectives.
Russians have full first names and also what is known as a diminutive first name (which is a form of their full first name).
A Russian's name will change as they age.
On an official birth certificate would be a new baby's full first name.
Her mother would likely call her by an endearing form for her whole life (this is like a pet name).
When the child goes to school she is called by a diminutive name by her teacher and classmates.
To complicate things more, when her friends get to know her better they call her by a pejorative form (this is like a nick name but is just a different form of the diminutive).
In higher grades she will likely be called by her full name by teachers (or her last name only). Her friends still use the diminutive.
She will be called by her full name when she is an adult, and probably occasionally called by the endearing form, what her mother called her, by her husband.
The same goes for male children.
Some Russian first names and their diminutive forms:
Masculine names:
Александр/Саша
Андрей/ Андрюша
Борис/ Боря
Виктор/ Витя
Григорий/ Гера
Иван/ Ваня
Михаил/ Миша
Сергей/ Серёжа
Юрий/ Юра
These names do not have a special diminutive form; Игорь, Максим, Олег.
Feminine names:
Александра /Саша
Анна /Аня
Валентина / Валя
Екатерина /Катя
Елена /Лена
Ирина /Ира
Мария /Маша
Ольга /Оля
София /Сотя
Татьяна /Таня
These names do not have a special diminutive form; Вера, Мариня, Нина.
Russians have full first names and also what is known as a diminutive first name (which is a form of their full first name).
A Russian's name will change as they age.
On an official birth certificate would be a new baby's full first name.
Her mother would likely call her by an endearing form for her whole life (this is like a pet name).
When the child goes to school she is called by a diminutive name by her teacher and classmates.
To complicate things more, when her friends get to know her better they call her by a pejorative form (this is like a nick name but is just a different form of the diminutive).
In higher grades she will likely be called by her full name by teachers (or her last name only). Her friends still use the diminutive.
She will be called by her full name when she is an adult, and probably occasionally called by the endearing form, what her mother called her, by her husband.
The same goes for male children.
Some Russian first names and their diminutive forms:
Masculine names:
Александр/Саша
Андрей/ Андрюша
Борис/ Боря
Виктор/ Витя
Григорий/ Гера
Иван/ Ваня
Михаил/ Миша
Сергей/ Серёжа
Юрий/ Юра
These names do not have a special diminutive form; Игорь, Максим, Олег.
Feminine names:
Александра /Саша
Анна /Аня
Валентина / Валя
Екатерина /Катя
Елена /Лена
Ирина /Ира
Мария /Маша
Ольга /Оля
София /Сотя
Татьяна /Таня
These names do not have a special diminutive form; Вера, Мариня, Нина.
Lesson: Adjectives of Nationality and Quality
So let's say you want to sound a little more interesting when you are talking to your friend Иван.
You suspect he's been trying to avoid you lately, and besides, you're tired of just pointing at people and asking if they are a basketball player or not.
What you really want to know is if certain people are good basketball players, and if they are Russian or Canadian (you can't help it if you're nosey).
What you need to do is learn some adjectives!
Adjectives describing quality:
masculine /feminine - English translation
хороший /хорошая - good
неплохой /неплохая - not bad
плохой /плохая - bad
известный /известная - famous
очен - very (this can be used with any adjective)
Adjectives always agree with the word they are describing. You have to be really careful of which ending (masculine or feminine) you are using depending on who/what you are talking about/to. Since all Russian adjectives agree with the noun used, if you were using the masculine version of a noun to describe a female (for example: композитор), all of the adjectives ( for example: хороший) would be in masculine form.
Take a moment to look at the adjectives listed in this post. The masculine words have the endings ий, ый, or ой. The feminine words all end in ая. Russian words can look really long and complicated but memorizing and recognizing these types of endings makes it a lot easier to learn.
Adjectives describing nationality:
These words aren't capitalized in Russian the way they would be in English.
русский /русская - Russian
канадский /канадская - Canadian
американский /американская - American
английский /английская - English
Most dictionary's only list the masculine form of words. Eventually you need to be able to convert these words to the feminine and even neuter versions (which we will learn another time so stop sweating!!).
You and Иван are hanging out in at a local rec center. You know that guy standing over there is a basketball player (because you've now asked him about a dozen times right?) but you don't know if he is Russian. You turn to Иван and ask "Это русский баскетболист?" (remember to raise the inotation for the word русский because that is what you are specifically asking about).
Иван answers "Да, русский" or "Нет, канадский"
You nod but are still curious about the guys skills so you ask "Это хороший русский баскетболист?"
Иван, thankful that you are asking him something different for a change, answers "Да, очен хороший" or "Нет, не хороший, а плохой".
You see how much better conversation can be with just a few adjectives?! But don't go booking a flight to Moscow just yet comrade...
You suspect he's been trying to avoid you lately, and besides, you're tired of just pointing at people and asking if they are a basketball player or not.
What you really want to know is if certain people are good basketball players, and if they are Russian or Canadian (you can't help it if you're nosey).
What you need to do is learn some adjectives!
Adjectives describing quality:
masculine /feminine - English translation
хороший /хорошая - good
неплохой /неплохая - not bad
плохой /плохая - bad
известный /известная - famous
очен - very (this can be used with any adjective)
Adjectives always agree with the word they are describing. You have to be really careful of which ending (masculine or feminine) you are using depending on who/what you are talking about/to. Since all Russian adjectives agree with the noun used, if you were using the masculine version of a noun to describe a female (for example: композитор), all of the adjectives ( for example: хороший) would be in masculine form.
Take a moment to look at the adjectives listed in this post. The masculine words have the endings ий, ый, or ой. The feminine words all end in ая. Russian words can look really long and complicated but memorizing and recognizing these types of endings makes it a lot easier to learn.
Adjectives describing nationality:
These words aren't capitalized in Russian the way they would be in English.
русский /русская - Russian
канадский /канадская - Canadian
американский /американская - American
английский /английская - English
Most dictionary's only list the masculine form of words. Eventually you need to be able to convert these words to the feminine and even neuter versions (which we will learn another time so stop sweating!!).
You and Иван are hanging out in at a local rec center. You know that guy standing over there is a basketball player (because you've now asked him about a dozen times right?) but you don't know if he is Russian. You turn to Иван and ask "Это русский баскетболист?" (remember to raise the inotation for the word русский because that is what you are specifically asking about).
Иван answers "Да, русский" or "Нет, канадский"
You nod but are still curious about the guys skills so you ask "Это хороший русский баскетболист?"
Иван, thankful that you are asking him something different for a change, answers "Да, очен хороший" or "Нет, не хороший, а плохой".
You see how much better conversation can be with just a few adjectives?! But don't go booking a flight to Moscow just yet comrade...
Vocabulary
Here are your 5 new vocabulary words, try to write them out as many times as you can. If you are having troubles reading them at all you should go back and review the alphabet. I can't stress how much easier it is when you actually take the time to learn it.
астронав (astronavt) - astronaut
балерина (balerrrrrina) - ballerina (female only)
господин (gospodin) - Mr.
госпожа (gospozha) - Ms.
доктор (i think you can figure this one out yourself, can't you?) - Dr. or Doctor (in titles)
Enjoy!
астронав (astronavt) - astronaut
балерина (balerrrrrina) - ballerina (female only)
господин (gospodin) - Mr.
госпожа (gospozha) - Ms.
доктор (i think you can figure this one out yourself, can't you?) - Dr. or Doctor (in titles)
Enjoy!
Monday, December 31, 2007
Practice makes perfect
Now that you know a little Russian, let's take what you have learned and apply it to a simple exercise.
Make a small list of people that are either writers, basketball players, musical artists, or actors.
Convert those names to Russian (remember, Russians spell names how they sound). Pretend that you don't know what the person's profession is and ask your imaginary friend Иван about them. Give Иван's answer.
Example:
You: Эдди Мерфи (Eddie Murphy) - это баскетболист? (remember to raise the intonation of your voice when saying "basketball player")
Иван: Нет, это актёр.
And then try this answer:
Иван: Нет, это не баскетболист, а актёр.
Make a small list of people that are either writers, basketball players, musical artists, or actors.
Convert those names to Russian (remember, Russians spell names how they sound). Pretend that you don't know what the person's profession is and ask your imaginary friend Иван about them. Give Иван's answer.
Example:
You: Эдди Мерфи (Eddie Murphy) - это баскетболист? (remember to raise the intonation of your voice when saying "basketball player")
Иван: Нет, это актёр.
And then try this answer:
Иван: Нет, это не баскетболист, а актёр.
Lesson: Asking Yes and No questions.
The Russian word for "yes" is "да" (da).
The Russian word for "no" is "нет" (neyt).
The Russian word for "not" is "не" (ne) (as in "This is not...")
When you are asking a question in Russian (that doesn't use who, what, where, etc.) all you need to do is raise the intonation of your voice.
For example, you are pointing at a picture in the news paper that you think is a basketball player. You are not sure so you ask your friend Иван "Это баскетболист?" or "This basketball player?" . You are right of course, so Иван answers "Да" or "Да, баскетболист" or even "Да, это баскетболист".
Now, let's suppose you are wrong, and the picture is actually of a musical artist. Иван (after slapping you across the back of the head) would answer "Нет" or "Нет, это артист" or even "Нет, это не баскетболист, а (but, whereas) артист". A negivtive answer to a yes/no question ALWAYS starts with "Нет".
Continue to point to people and ask about their professions.
Now wasn't that a breeze? Да?
The Russian word for "no" is "нет" (neyt).
The Russian word for "not" is "не" (ne) (as in "This is not...")
When you are asking a question in Russian (that doesn't use who, what, where, etc.) all you need to do is raise the intonation of your voice.
For example, you are pointing at a picture in the news paper that you think is a basketball player. You are not sure so you ask your friend Иван "Это баскетболист?" or "This basketball player?" . You are right of course, so Иван answers "Да" or "Да, баскетболист" or even "Да, это баскетболист".
Now, let's suppose you are wrong, and the picture is actually of a musical artist. Иван (after slapping you across the back of the head) would answer "Нет" or "Нет, это артист" or even "Нет, это не баскетболист, а (but, whereas) артист". A negivtive answer to a yes/no question ALWAYS starts with "Нет".
Continue to point to people and ask about their professions.
Now wasn't that a breeze? Да?
Lesson: Introductions: "Who is this?" and "This is a professor"
OK before we get into actual sentences (you should pat yourself on the back for making it this far by the way!), I need to tell you something...
In Russian they do not use the verb "to be" so you can just forget about it for now. They do have a verb for "to be" which is "быть" but it is not used in most cases.
Just so that you can grasp this idea a little better, let's say that you are telling me that your Dad is an Astronaut. You would say "My Dad Astronaut" and leave it at that. Or if you were going to the store it would be "I going to store".
So if you are asking me "Who is this?" you would actually just say "Who this?" or "Кто это?" (kto eto). Turning those words around and saying "Это кто" means "This who?" and is also acceptable.
Now that you have asked me who a person is I would answer simply "Это артистка" meaning "This artist" instead of "This is an artist". Or maybe I would say "Это баскетболистка", "Это профессор", "Это писатель" or "Это актёр".
In sentences where you are using a noun as the subject and the predicate, a dash is used to replace the verb to be. If you were trying to say "Anna is a ballerina", you would say "Anna - ballerina".
In Russian they do not use the verb "to be" so you can just forget about it for now. They do have a verb for "to be" which is "быть" but it is not used in most cases.
Just so that you can grasp this idea a little better, let's say that you are telling me that your Dad is an Astronaut. You would say "My Dad Astronaut" and leave it at that. Or if you were going to the store it would be "I going to store".
So if you are asking me "Who is this?" you would actually just say "Who this?" or "Кто это?" (kto eto). Turning those words around and saying "Это кто" means "This who?" and is also acceptable.
Now that you have asked me who a person is I would answer simply "Это артистка" meaning "This artist" instead of "This is an artist". Or maybe I would say "Это баскетболистка", "Это профессор", "Это писатель" or "Это актёр".
In sentences where you are using a noun as the subject and the predicate, a dash is used to replace the verb to be. If you were trying to say "Anna is a ballerina", you would say "Anna - ballerina".
Lesson: Greetings and Farewells.
The word you will probably use the most when speaking Russian is "Здравствйте" (zdraz-voot-yeh) or "Hello".
Now don't run screaming, I know it is a very intimidating word, but just relax. You will use this word so much that in no time you won't even have to think about it.
Why don't you take 5 minutes and write this word out for a bit. Make sure you are pronouncing it while you write, and with your sub conscience remember what you are trying to say (hello).
There are two forms of this word, the formal and the informal. A good rule of thumb is, if you are unsure of which to use, always use the formal greeting.
When you are greeting someone that is older than you, in a higher position that you, multiple people, or someone that you don't know, you say "Здравствйте" (zdraz-voot-yeh).
When you are greeting someone that is younger than you, in a lower position, or someone you know very well (friends, family, school mates) you use the shorter version "Здравствй" (zdraz-voo).
The only difference is the two letters missing from the end, but it is really important to know this.
Another word for hello is "привет" (privet), which means "hi". You would only use this with friends.
Some other ways of greeting people:
Доброе утро (dobro utro) - Good Morning.
Добрый день (dobree den) - Good day/Hello (suitable for greeting anyone during the day or afternoon).
Добрый вечер (dobree veecher) - Good evening.
Спокойной ночи (spokoinoi noich) - Good Night.
The standard way to say good-bye is "До свидания" (Dos-vi-dan-iya) and this doesn't change no matter who you are speaking to.
If you want to say "bye" to a friend or someone you are familiar with, you could say "пока" (poka) which literally means "meanwhile" (those crazy Russians!)
Another way to say good-bye is to say "Всего хорошего" (special pronunciation: visevo kharoshevo) which means "All the best".
Note: In the above word "его" is pronounced "evo". This may be the case for all "его" words but I am not sure of that at the moment.
Moving on...
Now don't run screaming, I know it is a very intimidating word, but just relax. You will use this word so much that in no time you won't even have to think about it.
Why don't you take 5 minutes and write this word out for a bit. Make sure you are pronouncing it while you write, and with your sub conscience remember what you are trying to say (hello).
There are two forms of this word, the formal and the informal. A good rule of thumb is, if you are unsure of which to use, always use the formal greeting.
When you are greeting someone that is older than you, in a higher position that you, multiple people, or someone that you don't know, you say "Здравствйте" (zdraz-voot-yeh).
When you are greeting someone that is younger than you, in a lower position, or someone you know very well (friends, family, school mates) you use the shorter version "Здравствй" (zdraz-voo).
The only difference is the two letters missing from the end, but it is really important to know this.
Another word for hello is "привет" (privet), which means "hi". You would only use this with friends.
Some other ways of greeting people:
Доброе утро (dobro utro) - Good Morning.
Добрый день (dobree den) - Good day/Hello (suitable for greeting anyone during the day or afternoon).
Добрый вечер (dobree veecher) - Good evening.
Спокойной ночи (spokoinoi noich) - Good Night.
The standard way to say good-bye is "До свидания" (Dos-vi-dan-iya) and this doesn't change no matter who you are speaking to.
If you want to say "bye" to a friend or someone you are familiar with, you could say "пока" (poka) which literally means "meanwhile" (those crazy Russians!)
Another way to say good-bye is to say "Всего хорошего" (special pronunciation: visevo kharoshevo) which means "All the best".
Note: In the above word "его" is pronounced "evo". This may be the case for all "его" words but I am not sure of that at the moment.
Moving on...
Explaining Vocabulary
Each day I will list 5 extra words for you to memorize. 5 words is nothing when you really think about it, and keep in mind that as you become more familiar with Russian words, this task will become easier. You should write these words out as many times as you can throughout the day (along with any other new words in each lesson that you try) and USE them by speaking them.
I keep a list of vocabulary words at my desk at work and write them out when ever I get the chance. By the time I come home from work I usually know them all.
Here are your first 5 words:
актёр (act-yor) - male actor
актриса (act-ree-sa) - female actress
артист (art-ist) - male artist (musical artist only)
артистка (art-ist-ka)- female artist (musical artist only)
баскетболист (basket-bol-ist) - male basketball player
баскетболистка (basket-bol-ist-ka) - female basketball player
писатель (piss-a-tel) - writer*
профессор (prof-ess-yor) - professor*
As you no doubt noticed, some Russian nouns (most actually) have a masculine and feminine version (there is also a neuter version which will come up later). The most common way to form the feminine word is by adding "ka" to the end, however some feminine nouns are completely different words, like the word for female actress; актриса. These you will have to memorize.
*with most professions it is not necessary to use a fem. version, in fact using the fem. version may even insult the person you are talking about/to. The masculine form of the words for "composer" and "professor" are used when talking about both females and males in those professions. You probably wouldn't want to call someone a female basketball player either (it might translate to playing basketball like a girl, no insult intended ladies!!) but it sounds cool so I listed it here.
My friend who is taking linguistics at the university told me that in order to survive one day of basic conversation you would need to know around 3000 words! That means, if you learn 5 words a day it will take you 400 days to be able to converse semi coherently in Russian. Don't let that discourage you because as we go along you will be learning a lot more than just 5 words a day. Just remember that the more you use a language, the easier it gets.
If you're just so curious you can't stand it (and you want to check out the 2000 most used words in Russian) go here.
Pronunciation
For now I am not going to get into pronunciation.
It is SO boring, and I just can't bring myself to get into it. Plus, there are so many rules...I am just going to make myself look like an idiot and confuse the hell out of you. I mean, so what if you sound completely retarded when you are speaking? Besides... it is a lot of rules that I am not really totally clear on 100% of the times(hence sounding completely ridiculous). To recap; sounding like an idiot+not totally clear on every rule=not going to teach you pronunciation for now.
I have included (in brackets) how I pronounce the word in order to assist you, but this may not be entirely correct. The good news is that I hear Russians themselves are VERY helpful and understanding towards English speakers, so it's not like they are going to lecture you for eight hours, or worse, publicly humiliate you for saying something with a thick English accent! Well, I can't really guarantee that they won't, but for now, if you want to learn about proper pronunciation try this. Or if you want to listen to some Russian words pronounced properly go here.
I promise at the very least I will add some more links to this post so that you can listen to the Russian language until your heart bursts.
Until then, add some Russian streaming radio to your music library. There are many different radio stations, just like in North America!! My personal favorite is Radio Chanson, radioretro, and this crazy "Wizard" station.
It is SO boring, and I just can't bring myself to get into it. Plus, there are so many rules...I am just going to make myself look like an idiot and confuse the hell out of you. I mean, so what if you sound completely retarded when you are speaking? Besides... it is a lot of rules that I am not really totally clear on 100% of the times(hence sounding completely ridiculous). To recap; sounding like an idiot+not totally clear on every rule=not going to teach you pronunciation for now.
I have included (in brackets) how I pronounce the word in order to assist you, but this may not be entirely correct. The good news is that I hear Russians themselves are VERY helpful and understanding towards English speakers, so it's not like they are going to lecture you for eight hours, or worse, publicly humiliate you for saying something with a thick English accent! Well, I can't really guarantee that they won't, but for now, if you want to learn about proper pronunciation try this. Or if you want to listen to some Russian words pronounced properly go here.
I promise at the very least I will add some more links to this post so that you can listen to the Russian language until your heart bursts.
Until then, add some Russian streaming radio to your music library. There are many different radio stations, just like in North America!! My personal favorite is Radio Chanson, radioretro, and this crazy "Wizard" station.
Lesson: More about the Cyrillic alphabet and Russian cognates.
Why is it called the Cyrillic alphabet? The Russian alphabet was devised by a monk named St. Cyril (born in Thessaloniki, Greece, sometime around 827 A.D.) so we call it the Cyrillic alphabet in his honor.
There are some letters in the Russian alphabet that are the exact same as in English:
Aa, Ee, Kk, Mm (in print, hand writing is another story), Oo, Tt (in print)
Read the following words: мама, атом, Том, Матт
There are some letters that look like English letters but are completely different sounding:
Bb(Vv), Hh(Nn), Pp(Rr), Cc (Ss), Yy(Uu), Xx(Kh)
Russians spell North American names the way they sound. Try reading some why don't you? Сара, Марк, Анна
Some additional sounds:
Йй(y), ы(i), Ээ(e)
And finally, the spelling signs:
ь - Мягкий знак - soft sign, doesn't have a sound or it's own but alters the preceding consonant into a soft or palatalized sound.
ъ - Твёрдый знак - hard sign, is sometimes used as a separating sign between the prefix and the stem of a word. Hardly any words have this sign.
The alphabet itself is fairly easy to read (once you have memorized the letters!) and many words sound the same or similar to English. These words are called Russian cognates. You can find a nice beginners list here. These words are also apparently known as "international words" (but I really can't verify that as I only know less than 2 languages haha). When you are first learning the alphabet, reading easy Russian cognates is totally the way to go. You don't need to memorize them (unless you want to), just practice reading them to help you learn the alphabet and get familiar with the way the letters look when grouped together.
Once you learn some cognates maybe you would like to take a brief look at some false cognates, or "false friends" as they are called in some circles.
There are some letters in the Russian alphabet that are the exact same as in English:
Aa, Ee, Kk, Mm (in print, hand writing is another story), Oo, Tt (in print)
Read the following words: мама, атом, Том, Матт
There are some letters that look like English letters but are completely different sounding:
Bb(Vv), Hh(Nn), Pp(Rr), Cc (Ss), Yy(Uu), Xx(Kh)
Russians spell North American names the way they sound. Try reading some why don't you? Сара, Марк, Анна
Note: If you haven't noticed yet, there is no J in the Cyrillic alphabet. In Russian you use "d" and "zh" to get a sound like "dzh" or "дж". So "Judy" would be spelled like "Джнды".
Now try some other J names: Джон, Джоы, and my personal favorite Джордж.
There are some letters in the alphabet that look totally different but sound the same as English letters:
Бб(Bb), Гг(Gg), Дд(Dd), Зз(Zz), Ии(Ii), Лл(Ll), Пп(Pp), Фф(Ff)
Try reading some more names in Russian: Адам, Роз, Линда, Кевин
Now try reading some easy cognates: лампа, папа, телефон, такси, парк
The Cyrillic alphabet has many "s" sounding letters that look and sound very different than English letters:
Жж(zh), Цц(ts), Чч(ch), Шш(sh), Щщ(shch)
Ready to try some more names? Челси, Чарлз, Шан, Шерон
Next are the yo-, yu-, ya's, different than the popular American singing group.
Ёё(yo), Юю(yu), Яя(ya)
When these letters are not at the beginning of a word, the sounds resemble o, u, and a.
Some additional sounds:
Йй(y), ы(i), Ээ(e)
And finally, the spelling signs:
ь - Мягкий знак - soft sign, doesn't have a sound or it's own but alters the preceding consonant into a soft or palatalized sound.
ъ - Твёрдый знак - hard sign, is sometimes used as a separating sign between the prefix and the stem of a word. Hardly any words have this sign.
The alphabet itself is fairly easy to read (once you have memorized the letters!) and many words sound the same or similar to English. These words are called Russian cognates. You can find a nice beginners list here. These words are also apparently known as "international words" (but I really can't verify that as I only know less than 2 languages haha). When you are first learning the alphabet, reading easy Russian cognates is totally the way to go. You don't need to memorize them (unless you want to), just practice reading them to help you learn the alphabet and get familiar with the way the letters look when grouped together.
Once you learn some cognates maybe you would like to take a brief look at some false cognates, or "false friends" as they are called in some circles.
Lesson: The Cyrillic alphabet
The very first thing you need to do when learning Russian is memorize the Cyrillic alphabet. I also recommend putting on a large fur hat and pulling out a bottle of vodka (no mix, just a shot glass).
Ready? Let's begin. There are 33 letters in the alphabet, some of which look and sound nothing like English letters.
Aa - a as in father
Бб - b as in bitch
Вв - v as in vain
Гг - g as in gun
Дд - d as in doggy style
Ее - ye, e as in yet
Ёё - yo as in yogurt
Жж - zh pleasure
Зз - z as in zoo
Ии - ee as in heel
Йй - y as in boy
Кк - k as in kinky
Лл - l as in lover
Мм - m as in mouth
Нн - n as in naughty
Oo - o as in or
Пп - p as in piss
Рр - r *the r is more like a Spanish r "rrrrrrrrrrrrr"
Сс - s as in sadist
Тт - t as in tied
Уу - u as in boom
Фф - f as in fuck
Хх - kh as in loch
Цц - ts as in cats
Чч - ch as in chastity belt
Шш - sh as in shut up
ЩЩ - shch as in fresh cheese
ъ - hard sign
ы - i as in hill
ь -soft sign
Ээ - e as in set
Юю - yu as in university
Яя - ya as in yard
Take as long as you need to memorize and learn the alphabet. Make a poster of the letters and what they sound like and hang it in your kitchen or living room. Make some flash cards or just write it out as many times as you can! In order for you to learn and speak easily you really do need to know what each letter sounds like. There are many rules that we will learn as we go along, and the sounds of some letters change depending on many factors. For now, if you can grasp what each letter basically sounds like you will be able to start learning some Russian vocabulary.
Ready? Let's begin. There are 33 letters in the alphabet, some of which look and sound nothing like English letters.
Aa - a as in father
Бб - b as in bitch
Вв - v as in vain
Гг - g as in gun
Дд - d as in doggy style
Ее - ye, e as in yet
Ёё - yo as in yogurt
Жж - zh pleasure
Зз - z as in zoo
Ии - ee as in heel
Йй - y as in boy
Кк - k as in kinky
Лл - l as in lover
Мм - m as in mouth
Нн - n as in naughty
Oo - o as in or
Пп - p as in piss
Рр - r *the r is more like a Spanish r "rrrrrrrrrrrrr"
Сс - s as in sadist
Тт - t as in tied
Уу - u as in boom
Фф - f as in fuck
Хх - kh as in loch
Цц - ts as in cats
Чч - ch as in chastity belt
Шш - sh as in shut up
ЩЩ - shch as in fresh cheese
ъ - hard sign
ы - i as in hill
ь -soft sign
Ээ - e as in set
Юю - yu as in university
Яя - ya as in yard
Take as long as you need to memorize and learn the alphabet. Make a poster of the letters and what they sound like and hang it in your kitchen or living room. Make some flash cards or just write it out as many times as you can! In order for you to learn and speak easily you really do need to know what each letter sounds like. There are many rules that we will learn as we go along, and the sounds of some letters change depending on many factors. For now, if you can grasp what each letter basically sounds like you will be able to start learning some Russian vocabulary.
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Master Vocabulary List.
You can use ctrl + f to find any word:
- а - but, whereas
- актёр – actor
- актриса - actress
- aлконавт - alcohlic
- aмазонка – prostitute
- американец – American male
- американка – American female
- американский/ая - American
- английский/ая - English
- артист/ка - male/female artist (musical artist only
- астронав – astronaut
- бабушка - grandmother
- балерина - ballerina (female only
- баскетболист/ка - male/female basketball player
- видеокамера - camcorder
- видеомагнитофон - VCR
- брат - brother
- брат по оецу/ брат по матери - stepbrother
- бывшая жена - ex-wife
- бывший муж - ex-husband
- вас - you, formal or plural
- велосипед - bicycle
- внук - grandson
- внучка – granddaughter
- вот - here
- Всего хорошего - All the best
- вы – you (formal/pural
- газета - newspaper
- говорить – to speak
- господин - Mr.
- госпожа - Ms.
- да - yes
- дедушка – grandfather
- дети - children
- До свидания - Good bye
- Доброе утро - Good morning
- Добрый вечер - Good evening
- Добрый день - Good day/afternoon
- доктор - Dr. or Doctor (in titles)
- дома – at home
- друг – male friend
- дядя - uncle
- его - he
- её - she
- ешё - still
- журнал - magazine
- Здравствй/те - Hello
- зовут - called
- или - or
- их - them
- как - how
- канадец – Canadian male
- канадка – Canadian female
- канадский/ая - Canadian
- книга - book
- композитор - composer
- компьютер - computer
- конечно – of course
- космонавт - cosmonaut
- красивый - beautiful
- кто - who
- кто такой/ая - who is
- магнитофон - tape recorder
- Mама – Mom
- Мать - Mother
- меня - me
- машина - car
- молодой - young
- мотоцикл - motorcycle
- муж – husband
- муж моей матери - stepfather
- мы - us
- не - not (within a sentence
- немного – a little
- неплохо - not badly
- неплохой/ая - not bad
- нет - no
- Ну что ты! – Oh come on
- он – he
- она – she
- они – they
- Oтец - Father
- очень - very
- Папа – Dad
- пианист /пианистка – pianist
- Пиздато – wonderful – an answer to the question “How’s things?”
- писатель - writer
- письмо - letter
- плохо - badly
- плохой/ая - bad
- по-английски – (in) English
- по-испански – (in) Spanish
- по-китайски – (in) Chinese
- по-немецки – (in) German
- по-русски – (in) Russian
- по-французки – (in) French
- по-яапонски – (in) Japanese
- подруга – female friend
- Пока - Bye/See you
- понимать – to undersand
- Потаскуха - slut
- потография - photograph
- президент – president
- преподаватель – teacher (college level)
- Привет - Hi
- принтер - printer
- профессор - professor
- роман - novel
- русский – Russian male
- русская – Russian female
- русский/ая - Russian
- свободно – fluently
- семья – family
- сестра – sister
- сестра по оецу/ сестра по матери - stepsister
- симпатичный - nice
- словарь - dictionary (masc.)
- спасибо - Thank you
- Спокойной ночи - Good night
- спортсмен /спортсменка - athlete
- студент/ка - student
- танцор - male dancer
- тебя - you, singular
- теннисист/ка - tennis player
- тётя - aunt
- тоже - also
- только - only
- турист/ка – tourist
- ты – you (familiar)
- футболист/ка - soccer player
- хена - wife
- хена моего отца - stepmother
- хоккеист/ка – ice-hockey player
- хороший/ая - good
- хорошо - well
- чуть-чуть – just a little bit
- шахматист/ка – chess player
- это – this
- Я - I
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