Complete Russian Speaking Challenge

Здра́вствуйте! Меня́ зову́т А́нна, я из А́нглии.

Hello! My name is Anna, I'm from England.

The first sentence of Lesson 1 and still the one you will use most. «Меня зовут» is learnt whole: «меня» is the accusative of «я» and «зовут» is a third-person plural, so the literal sense is «me they-call». «из» governs the genitive, hence «из Англии». Everything after the exclamation mark is one breath — Russian does not pause before «я из».

Я живу́ в Москве́ уже́ два го́да и рабо́таю в ба́нке.

I've been living in Moscow for two years now and I work in a bank.

Four lessons in one line. «в Москве» answers «где?» and so is prepositional; «два года» is 2 + genitive singular, because 2, 3 and 4 govern the genitive singular of the counted noun; «уже» puts the stress on its final syllable, уже́; and the present tense of «жить» and «работать» covers what English needs a present perfect continuous for. Russian has no such tense and does not want one.

Ско́лько сейча́с вре́мени? — Без че́тверти пять.

What time is it now? — A quarter to five.

«Сколько времени?» and «Который час?» both ask the time; the first is the neutral everyday one. «время» is the odd -мя noun: nominative «время», but genitive, dative and prepositional all insert -ен-, giving «времени». The answer uses «без + genitive» for «to» the hour — «без четверти пять», literally «without a quarter, five». «четверть» is a third-declension feminine, so its genitive is «четверти», not *четвертя.

Извини́те, вы не мо́гли бы мне помо́чь?

Excuse me, could you help me?

The conditional is the past tense plus «бы»: «не могли бы» is literally «could you not». It is the polite request frame, and the negative is idiomatic rather than logical — Russian softens a request by questioning it. «помогать» governs the dative, so «help me» is «мне помочь» and never *«меня помочь». «Извините» is the вы form; to one friend it is «извини».

Я хоте́л бы биле́т до Москвы́, пожа́луйста.

I'd like a ticket to Moscow, please.

«билет до + genitive» names the destination on a ticket, and «до Москвы» is the same construction as «до вокзала». A man says «я хотел бы», a woman «я хотела бы» — the conditional keeps the past-tense ending, which is where the gender shows. «хотеть» is mixed-conjugation, but here you only need the past.

Да́йте мне, пожа́луйста, меню́ и счёт.

Could I have the menu and the bill, please.

Two indeclinables and a monosyllable. «меню» never changes, whatever case the sentence needs, so it is the same word in «дайте меню» and «в меню». «мне» is the dative of «я» — the recipient of «дайте» — while the things given are in the accusative, which for inanimates looks exactly like the nominative. «счёт» is the bill; the word also means «score» and «account».

За́втра я бу́ду рабо́тать, а ве́чером мы пойдём в теа́тр.

Tomorrow I shall be working, and in the evening we'll go to the theatre.

Both futures side by side. «буду работать» is the imperfective future — two words, a process with no endpoint, and the right choice with «завтра» when you mean the day will be spent doing it. «пойдём» is the perfective future of «пойти» — one word, a single completed departure. «вечером» is the instrumental of «вечер» frozen into an adverb, which is why it takes no preposition.

Е́сли бу́дет дождь, мы оста́немся дома́.

If it rains we'll stay at home.

After «если» English refuses «will» — «if it rains» — but Russian has no such squeamishness: the если-clause takes ordinary future forms, «если будет дождь», «если ты придёшь». «будет дождь» is the idiomatic weather formula, literally «there will be rain»; «пойдёт дождь» says the rain will start. «останемся» is a -ся verb: the -ся ending never changes, whatever the person. «дома» is the locative adverb «at home», not a case form of «дом» — and the stress proves it: the adverb is «дома́», while the genitive of the noun is «до́ма».

У меня́ боли́т голова́, мне ну́жно к врачу́.

I've got a headache, I need to see a doctor.

Say what hurts with «у меня болит» + the NOMINATIVE: «у меня болит голова», never *«у меня болит голову». Several things hurting take the plural verb — «болят голова и горло». «мне нужно к + dative» is the chunk for «I need to get to»: «к врачу». «врач» is an animate masculine, so its accusative would equal the genitive, but here the dative is doing the work.

Скажи́те, пожа́луйста, где здесь апте́ка?

Tell me please, is there a pharmacy round here?

«где здесь» — «where here» — is the ordinary way to ask for something nearby, and it is much more natural than «где находится аптека». The subject stays nominative because there is no movement: «аптека», not «аптеку». «Скажите» is the вы imperative of «сказать», and it is the polite opener for any question to a stranger.

Иди́те пря́мо до перекрёстка, пото́м напра́во. Э́то пять мину́т.

Go straight ahead as far as the crossing, then right. It's five minutes.

«до + genitive» is «as far as», so «до перекрёстка». «потом» is «then», and it is the word that lets you give a route in short stages instead of one long sentence. 5 and above take the genitive plural, and the genitive plural of «минута» is bare «минут» — «пять минут», «двадцать минут». The imperative «идите» is the вы form of «идти».

Вчера́ я прочита́л кни́гу и написа́л письмо́.

Yesterday I read the book and wrote the letter.

Two perfectives in a row, and that is the point: the sequence reports completed results, so neither verb can be imperfective. «вчера» forces the past but says nothing about aspect on its own — «вчера я читал книгу» is equally good Russian and means you were reading it, not that you finished. «письмо» is the -о noun whose genitive plural inserts a fleeting vowel: «письмо → письма → писем».

Объясни́те, пожа́луйста, ещё раз — я ничего́ не понима́ю.

Explain it once more please, I don't understand anything.

Russian negates twice where English allows one negative: «ничего не понимаю» keeps both «ничего» and «не». Drop the «не» and the sentence stops being standard. «ещё раз» is «once more» — «раз» is the counting word for occasions and does not change after numbers in this phrase. Pronunciation: the «ч» of «ничего» stays [tɕ] — do not confuse it with «что», where the «ч» turns into [ʂ] and the whole word is [ʂto].

Мне нра́вится Москва́, поэ́тому я хочу́ здесь жить.

I like Moscow, so I want to live here.

Three constructions that English-speakers get wrong for years, all in one sentence. «нравиться» puts the person who likes in the dative («мне») and agrees with the thing liked, so a plural subject gives «мне нравятся». «поэтому» looks forward to a result; «потому что» looks back to a reason, and the two are not interchangeable. «хочу» is the mixed-conjugation form of «хотеть» and takes a plain infinitive.

Ско́лько сто́ит но́мер в гости́нице?

How much does a hotel room cost?

«стоить» keeps its stress on the stem in the third person — «сто́ит», not *«стои́т» — and its subject is the thing with the price, in the nominative. «в гостинице» is prepositional because the question is «где?». «номер» does double duty: a room in a hotel and a telephone number.

Мо́жно заплати́ть ка́ртой? Да́йте, пожа́луйста, чек.

Can I pay by card? Could I have a receipt, please.

«Можно + infinitive» is the impersonal way to ask permission, and it needs no subject: literally «is it allowed to pay». The means of payment goes in the instrumental without a preposition — «картой», «наличными» — exactly like an instrument, «ручкой», «ножом». «чек» is the receipt; do not confuse it with «счёт», which is the bill you are given before you pay.

В магази́не нет хле́ба, но есть молоко́.

There's no bread in the shop, but there is milk.

The negative-existence pair. «нет» governs the genitive — «нет хлеба» — and is used only in the present tense; the past says «не было», the future «не будет». «есть» in the positive half governs the nominative, «есть молоко». Both «хлеб» and «молоко» are treated as uncountables here, which is why neither takes a plural. «молоко» is the reduction example every course starts with: three «о», one of them stressed.

Я всегда́ встреча́юсь с друзья́ми в суббо́ту, а ино́гда и в воскресе́нье.

I always meet my friends on Saturday, and sometimes on Sunday too.

Days of the week take «в + accusative» and are written with a small letter: «в субботу», «в воскресенье». Frequency adverbs sit next to the verb they modify, usually before it. «с друзьями» is «с + instrumental» for «together with», and the instrumental plural of «друг» is «друзьями», stressed on the first vowel of the ending like «часами» and «днями». «встречаться» is a reciprocal -ся verb: the friends are meeting each other.

Мо́жет быть, ты зна́ешь, что де́лать?

Maybe you know what to do?

«Может быть» is the hedge — «maybe», «possibly» — and it stands outside the sentence, set off by a comma. «что делать» is the fixed phrase for «what to do»: an interrogative plus a bare infinitive, with no «to» and no conjugated verb. Note that «что» is pronounced [ʂto]; the «ч» spelling is historical.

Помоги́те, пожа́луйста! Мне о́чень пло́хо, вы́зовите врача́.

Help please! I feel very ill, call a doctor.

The three sentences that matter in an emergency, in order. «Мне плохо» is the impersonal dative — there is no subject, the feeling simply happens to you. «вызовите» is the вы imperative of «вызвать», whose stress stays on the prefix «вы-», as it does in every perfective of that shape: «вы́зовите», «вы́йду», «вы́пил». «врача» is the accusative of an animate masculine, which is why it looks like the genitive.

Мы пое́дем в Ита́лию на по́езде и́ли на самолёте?

Shall we go to Italy by train or by plane?

Direction is «в / на + accusative», so «в Италию» — feminine nouns in -ия change -я to -ю. The means of transport is «на + prepositional», so «на поезде» and «на самолёте»: same preposition, different case, and the question word decides which. A statement with a rising tone does the work of a question mark, so this is fine spoken as it stands.

Ты же сказа́л, что придёшь в шесть!

But you said you would come at six!

«же» does no grammatical work at all and changes everything: it says «as you already know», and it turns a flat report into a reproach. It always leans on the word before it and is never stressed. «сказал» is the perfective past, reporting one completed act; «говорил» would report the fact of his having said it, repeatedly or at length. «в шесть» is «в + accusative» for a clock time, and for the numerals 5 and above the accusative looks exactly like the nominative, so «шесть» does not change.

В понеде́льник я иду́ на рабо́ту, а во вто́рник — в музе́й.

On Monday I'm going to work, and on Tuesday to the museum.

«в» becomes «во» before «вт» and a few other awkward clusters — «во вторник», «во Франции», «во сколько». The present tense of «идти» carries a future meaning here, which is exactly what the imperfective present does with a named day: «в понедельник я иду» is a settled plan. The dash stands for the verb you are not repeating.

Спаси́бо большо́е! Я о́чень рад вас ви́деть.

Thank you very much! I'm very glad to see you.

«рад» is a short adjective, and short adjectives do not decline — they agree in gender and number only: «рад» (a man), «рада» (a woman), «рады» (several people). They are the predicates of feeling, and they never take a noun ending. «вас» is the accusative of «вы», governed by «видеть».

Да́же мой брат зна́ет э́то.

Even my brother knows that.

«даже» is «even», and like every Russian particle it sits immediately before the word it strengthens — move it and you change what is surprising. «Даже мой брат» makes the brother the surprise; «мой даже брат» is not a sentence. The whole line is monosyllables except «даже», «знает» and «это», which is why it is a good drill for keeping your rhythm flat and your stress sharp.

Вчера́ шёл дождь, а сего́дня со́лнечно и тепло́.

It rained yesterday, but today it's sunny and warm.

Weather in Russian is mostly impersonal: no subject, just a state word in the neuter adverb form — «солнечно», «тепло», «холодно», «ветрено», «пасмурно». When there IS a subject it is the precipitation, and the verb is «идёт»: «идёт дождь», «идёт снег». Two pronunciations to note: the «г» of «сегодня» is [v], and «шёл» is a monosyllable, so it carries no stress mark.