Understanding how to pronounce each letter is the next step in mastering the Russian alphabet. Below is a guide to help you get started.
Russian Alphabet
Pronunciation
А
Like ‘a’ in “father”
Б
Like ‘b’ in “boy”
В
Like ‘v’ in “victory”
Г
Like ‘g’ in “go”
Д
Like ‘d’ in “dog”
Е
Like ‘ye’ in “yes”
Ё
Like ‘yo’ in “yolk”
Ж
Like ‘s’ in “measure”
З
Like ‘z’ in “zebra”
И
Like ‘ee’ in “see”
Й
Like ‘y’ in “boy”
К
Like ‘k’ in “kite”
Л
Like ‘l’ in “lamp”
М
Like ‘m’ in “man”
Н
Like ‘n’ in “nose”
О
Like ‘o’ in “bore”
П
Like ‘p’ in “pet”
Р
Like ‘r’ in “run” (slightly rolled)
С
Like ‘s’ in “sun”
Т
Like ‘t’ in “top”
У
Like ‘oo’ in “boot”
Ф
Like ‘f’ in “fan”
Х
Like ‘h’ in “hello,” but rougher
Ц
Like ‘ts’ in “cats”
Ч
Like ‘ch’ in “cheese”
Ш
Like ‘sh’ in “shut”
Щ
Like ‘shch’ in “fresh cheese”
Ъ
Hard Sign – No sound; hardens preceding consonant
Ы
Like ‘i’ in “bit,” but deeper
Ь
Soft Sign – No sound; softens preceding consonant
Э
Like ‘e’ in “met”
Ю
Like ‘yu’ in “yule”
Я
Like ‘ya’ in “yard”
Tips for Pronunciation:
Pay attention to the soft sign (Ь) and hard sign (Ъ), as they can change the pronunciation of a word.
Some letters have different sounds depending on their position in a word or the letters surrounding them. Practice with examples provided in this course.
