To say hello in Russian, use the informal "Privet" (pree-vyet) for friends, or the more formal "Zdravstvuyte" (zdrahv-stvooy-tye) for strangers or elders, which is often shortened to "Zdrastvui" (zdrah-stvooy) or even "Zdrastye" (zdras-tye) informally. You can also use time-based greetings like "Dobryy den'" (DOH-brih dyen') for "Good afternoon".
The informal way of saying "hello" in Russian is privyet! (pree-vyet) It's similar to the English "hi," and you should be on pretty familiar terms with a person before you use this greeting.
– Kak dela? (informal) – How are you?
Simple Russian greetings
Доброе утро (dobroye utro): Good morning. Добрый день (dobriy den): Good afternoon. Добрый вечер (dobriy vyecher): Good evening. Здравствуйте (zdravstvuyte): Hello.
The word DOBRO in Russian encompasses all that is positive and good, the very opposite of evil.
Собака (sobaka) means just a dog and is not vulgar.
In order to say hello to your friends Russians use the word "Privet!" (Привет), it is an informal way of speaking. However, to say hello formally you will have to strain a little bit and pronounce this long greeting "Zdravstvuyte" (Здравствуйте!), stress should be placed on the first syllable.
The 7-Letter Russian Spelling Rule dictates that after the consonants г, к, х, ж, ч, ш, щ, you must write и (not ы) and у (not ю), even though the sounds might seem to call for the other vowel, due to these consonants being 'hard' or 'unpaired'. This rule ensures consistent spelling in endings, like using -и for plural nouns (книги - books) or -и in adjectives (русский - Russian), preventing common errors for learners.
"Paka paka" (пока пока) in Russian is an informal, casual way to say "bye-bye," used with close friends and family, similar to English expressions like "see ya" or "ta-ta," derived from the single word "paka" (пока) meaning "bye". While "paka" (пока) literally means "while" or "until," it functions as a simple "bye," and doubling it adds emphasis and cuteness, making it very informal.
Будьте здоровы if you want to be polite.
Кола is widely used in informal spoken Russian, meaning Coke the soft drink.
Bozhe moi or боже мой means my god! Other English equivalents might be- oh my!
Здравствуйте (Zdravstvuyte) – The most common formal greeting, meaning “Hello.” Доброе утро (Dobroe utro) – “Good morning” (used until around noon). Добрый день (Dobry den') – “Good afternoon” (used from noon until early evening). Добрый вечер (Dobry vecher) – “Good evening” (used after 6 PM).
To say 1-8 in Russian, you say один (odin), два (dva), три (tri), четыре (chetyre), пять (pyat'), шесть (shest'), семь (sem'), восемь (vosem'), with pronunciations like "ah-DEEN," "DVAH," "TREE," "chye-TYRY," "PYAT," "SHYEST," "SYEM," and "VOH-syem," respectively.
Now that you've learned how to greet someone informally, let's check out some of the most common formal greetings in English.
Privet (Привет)
This is the most basic Russian greeting, simply meaning “hello.” This is an informal way to address anyone from friends to family members, and has the same usage as “hi” or “hey.” The response is usually the same back, but you can also mix it up with any of the other greetings below!
"Shtoh" (шto) in Russian is the common pronunciation for the word что, which means "what," "which," "that," or "anything," depending on the context, and is one of the most frequent Russian words used in questions like "What happened?" (Что случилось? - Shtoh slooh-chee-lahs'?) or to mean "that" in complex sentences. While technically "chto," the "ch" often softens to an "sh" sound in everyday speech, making "shtoh" the more common way to say it, especially in quick speech.
Russian has two different rolled-R sounds. One is a trilled rolled R, but the more common rolled-R sound is a lightly rolled R that you might use in the Russian word “ruble.”
The Cyrillic alphabet is closely based on the Greek alphabet, with about a dozen additional letters invented to represent Slavic sounds not found in Greek.
How to Say No in Russian: 14 Phrases
Пожалуйста (Pozhaluysta)
"Пожалуйста" is the most common and versatile way to say "please" in Russian.