russian cursive essay

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Learn the Russian Cursive Alphabet (+7 examples)

Do you want to read and write the Russian cursive alphabet?

Then I’ve got good and bad news for you:

The bad news is that it’s a lot more difficult to read than the regular Cyrillic alphabet .

For example: can you decipher this note?

Any success? If yes, then you can now stop reading this article.

If not, continue reading. You’ll learn everything you need to know about the Russian cursive writing.

And what about the good news? You’l find the goods news at the end of this article.

Take a look at the Russian cursive alphabet

Here’s an overview of all the letters in the Russian alphabet – both capital and lowercase.

Why is Russian cursive so difficult?

As you read a couple paragraphs ago, Russian cursive looks virtually impossible to read for the untrained eye. I started learning Russian in the beginning of 2016, and now regulary get mistaken for a native speaker when I’m speaking Russian.

I still struggle reading Russian cursive handwriting. Though to be honest, I’ve never put effort into it. I’m starting to get to the level where I can read Russian at about 0,75 times the speed of how I read English/Dutch. But it slows down to about 0,4 when it comes to or italicized letters. You often find those in books.

Even worse, when it comes to a real handwritten note, reading speed even slows down more.

So why is Russian cursive handwriting much more difficult to read than the regular part?

By the way, if you want to learn Russian quickly, I've got a course that teaches you how to use strategic habit-building to make learning Russian fun, easy, and automatic. It's not free, but it's helpful if you're currently struggling with learning Russian. You can find more information here.

Some letters look completely different from their regular counterpart

In English, handwritten letters are very similar to their block counterparts. In Russian, things are completely different.

Take the letter ‘т’ for example…. in cursive it’s ‘ т’.

Once you encounter this for the first time, you’re going to stare at it and think why on earth they did this? The letter T in cursive looks exactly like the block letter m…..

This will take a while to get used to.

And there are a couple more letters that undergo radical shifts. You’ll also have a lot of fun with your в’s and д’s.

Russian cursive challenge

If you want to learn to write Russian cursive, you can take 3 routes:

• Not pay attention at all. Maybe you’ll learn it while learning other parts of Russian. Maybe you won’t. This is what I did.
• Pay a little bit of attention. You’re probably in this group if you’re reading this article. You know a little bit, but it will take a long time before you can comfortable write it.
• Go all out. Serious about learning to write Russian cursive? Then take a month and completely focus all your Russian practice on learning cursive.

The first 2 don’t take effort. The third variant needs about half an hour every day for 30 days.

See it as a Russian cursive challenge!

At the end you’ll comfortable be able to write in Russian.

The program consists of copying handwriting to internalize the script. And a lot of reading to get your brain to recognize the letters better.

Prerequisites:

Before you can start the challenge, you need to be able to do the following. Otherwise the challenge won’t make any sense:

• you know the Russian alphabet
• you can already write words in the Russian regular block alphabet
• you’re at least at level A2 in Russian. Meaning you can form simple sentences and introduce yourself in conversations.

Here’s a short A2 text. If you understand this, you can start the challenge:

text with a2 level.

The first week is all about learning and recognizing the letters. You’ll gain a good overview of the alphabet in cursive and will be able to write your first words

Daily tasks:

• copy the entire alphabet in cursive by hand 2 times (10 minutes)
• watch this video

When can you graduate the next week?

Take the regular Russian block alphabet, and write the Russian cursive variant next to it from memory. Do this at the end of the week, and compare your cursive with the correct. If you’ve got all the letters approximately correct, you can continue. Small mistakes in how you write the letter are okay. As long as you don’t completely mess them up.

Something like this below is fine!

Week 2 is all about drilling things deeper. you’ll make sure you remember the alphabet correctly.

• write down the alphabet from memory 2 times. Compare with a source after each repetition. (10 minutes)
• Read the following Russian cursive text (20 minutes)

When can you graduate to the next week?

If, at the end you wrote all the letters the way they should be, you can continue to the next week.

In the third week you’ll learn how to form you first words and interconnect all the letters. There are no formal rules how to connect the letters, so you’ll develop your own style. Also, by now you’ve seen in the last 2 weeks how usually the letters are connected. Take the texts you read in the previous 2 weeks and go handcopy them.

Daily task:

• Handcopy the texts from the previous 2 weeks. Interchange between them to make it more interesting. (30 minutes)

When can you graduate?

If you feel you can now comfortable write Russian cursive, you can continue to the next week.

In this week you will start to write Russian cursiveyourself. The main goal is to internalize the letters and words even more.

• write 10 sentences about yourself. Introduce who you are, what your hobbies are and why you’re learning Russian.

Repeat this throughout the week to get a good grasp on writing and forming sentences in Russian handwriting.

When have you graduated?

Post what you’ve written on the Russian Reddit and ask people if they can read it! If then can, you’ve successfully passed the 30 day Russian cursive challenge!

Food for thought: do you NEED to know Russian cursive?

Take a quick look at the Russian subreddit (community of 60.000 + Russian learners). You quickly see that many people have it as personal challenge to learn Russian well .

Many Russian redditors also want to learn how to write Russian cursive handwriting.

I’m going to give a slightly unpopular opinion here.

You don’t need to learn Russian cursive.

Yes, it’s nice to know Russian cursive writing.

Yes, it’s cool to show your friends.

Yes, Russians appreciate your effort into learning it.

But no. Your Russian language speakings skills are not going to improve by learning Russian cursive writing.

One problem I see often is that people focus on the wrong things when learning Russian.

What do I mean?

You care most about speaking Russian. Right?

No matter how good your Russian cursive writing is. If you haven’t put in the time to practice speaking… you’re going to be lousy at having conversations.

In my 6 years of learning Russian, basically all I did was focus on speaking.

Sure, I watched a lot of movies, and listened to music. BUT. Those are worth nothing if you’re not speaking.

Do you recognize yourself in this? If not, then you need to start some speaking practices quickly. After you’ve got that started you can then start focusing on the Russian handwriting.

Russian Cursive FAQ

Below you can find answers to some common questions regarding Russian cursive:

Is Russian cursive real?

Yes, Russian cursive is real. Even though it may seem impossible for you to read it, Russian people still use it. Luckily you don’t need to know it as a foreigner as most communication is done by typing these days.

How do you write cursive in Russian?

First you need to know the regular Cyrillic alphabet. Only then can you start to learn Russian cursive writing. Make sure to take your time and practice each letter on its own in both capital and small letters.

Why does Russian cursive look like that?

It looks weird because it has evolved throughout the years to be fast to write and easy to understand for native speakers. But that can make it difficult for non-native speakers to read Russian cursive.

Can Russians read their own cursive?

Yes, Russians can read their own cursive. But it depends on who write it. Just like in English, if someone has a horrible handwriting, not everyone else is able to correctly decipher what’s written.

What should you do next?

Learning Russian is easy. All you need to do is take a balanced approach:

While everyone else is struggling to learn Russian, your Russian will improve on a day-to-day basis.

A student recently told me: “I have been studying Russian for a year. In my head I can prepare basic sentences, yet when it comes to actually speaking I ‘chock’. ”

Imagine spending a year learning Russian and still stumbling for words having a conversation with a native speaker…

That’s why you must pay extra attention to the speaking subskill of learning Russian:

Otherwise you will end up studying for hundreds of hours and still struggle to say a coherent phrase in Russian.

It’s much more fun to see your efforts result in actual conversational skills.

How do I know?

Because this is how I became fluent in Russian myself.

Curious how I did it?

Go here and get my systemized approach to speaking Russian well.

Hurry up, every day you follow an ineffective approach is a day forever lost 🙂

About the author

Ari Helderman

Hi, my name is Ari! I help people learn Russian through videos and blog posts where I share my experience. I've been learning Russian since 2016. I often get mistaken for a native Russian speaker, so I've learned a thing or two about what works and what doesn't if you want to speak Russian well . I'm here to help, so leave a comment with any questions!

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• Aug 16, 2015

Hello, Russian Cursive!

Updated: Dec 29, 2020

When American students take their first Russian course, it is hard for many of them to accept the fact that they have to write in cursive all the time. Sometimes they find the ways to cheat and don’t bother writing in cursive if it’s not for a graded assignment. Also, they try to find different explanations why they should not write in cursive. For example, they often say that they are not very good at English cursive, and that is why it is impossible for them to write in cursive Russian. This is quite understandable because practicing Russian cursive takes patience and time, and it could sometimes drive you crazy and even make you cry. However, if you are serious about learning the Russian language, you should accept Russian cursive as part of your learning.

So, what is Russian cursive, and why is it so important to learn it?

According to Wikipedia , Russian cursive is the handwritten form of the modern Russian Cyrillic script, which is used instead of the block letters of printed material. Russian cursive was developed in the 18th century on the base of earlier Cyrillic tachygraphy and reshaped under the influence of contemporary Latin-based cursives.

Unlike English cursive, Russian cursive system is not considered a formal style of writing. In fact, it a standard practice for Russians to write in cursive almost exclusively. Most handwritten Russian, especially personal letters and schoolwork, uses the cursive alphabet.

In Russian schools, most children are taught cursive handwriting in the first grade. They complete a lot of practice sheets to master their handwriting. Here is one of them.

The results that schoolchildren try to achieve look like this.

This phrase contains all letters of the Russian alphabet, and it is similar to the English sentence THE QUICK BROWN FOX JUMPS OVER THE LAZY DOG. Great phrase for practice, isn't it?

Anyway, when kids grow up, they develop their own handwriting style, and their cursive letters no longer have perfect curves and connecting lines. Some Russians, by the way, end up having terrible handwriting, almost impossible to decipher. For example, Russian medical doctors are notorious for having the worst handwriting ever.

Nowadays, some young people don't follow the rules they learned in grade school, and choose not to connect some letters. However, they almost never use block letters.

Perfect handwriting could be seen mostly among people of older generation while younger people don't use cursive much due to the digital age.

I hope you have an idea that Russian cursive is not easy for either Russians or foreigners who study Russian. However, my dear students, I have some good news for you. Most students, who take the first semester of Russian, become really good at Russian cursive after just the first month of practice. If Russian kids in the grade school can do it, you can! With this positive thought in mind, please keep calm and practice cursive Russian. Good luck!

• Russian alphabet

Russian Intonation: Intonation Contours (IC) | PowerPoint Slides

The Imperative: Forms and Aspects. PowerPoint Slides

Russian Cursive Alphabet and All of its Secrets

Even though I’ve been living in Moscow for almost 9 years now, I must admit that every time I need to read Russian handwriting (that is Russian cursive) I broke into a sweat .

Oddly enough, when it comes to writing Russian cursive, I feel very confident and have no problems at all .

So where do these difficulties in reading Cyrillic cursive come from? Why is Russian cursive so scary and what should you do to improve your Russian handwriting skills?

Let’s figure this out!

Did you like this post about Russian cursive? Do you have any questions?

Leave me a comment!

I hope I have helped you! Help me back! Rate this post and share it with your friends!

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2 thoughts on “ Russian Cursive Alphabet and All of its Secrets ”

Russian cursive I write well, reading Russian cursive, like you I find, is a nightmare. Sometimes I mistakenly use a T or d, and my friends take delight in correcting me. 50 years later I think speech to text on the mobile is making us all lazy.

That’s true! “Digital” texts are much easier to read and write!

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Basic information [ edit | edit source ]

• Cursive is a style of writing in which most if not all letters in one word are connected by ancillary serifs. With this method, a single word can usually be written in one stroke.
• Russian culture highly regards cursive, similar to the way Chinese culture exalts good calligraphy.

External links [ edit | edit source ]

Sample of Russian cursive and writing practice sheet PDF

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March 6, 2022

Russian Handwriting in Cursive – A Complete How-To Guide

Russian handwriting in cursive - a complete how-to guide.

In this guide, we discuss the differences between Russian handwriting – often called printing – and Russian cursive. Although “handwriting” is the action used to write with an instrument and one’s hand, we will use the word “handwriting” to describe letters that do not join and are not tilted and “cursive” to denote flowy letters that are slanted and join together.

Russian cursive, sometimes called Russian script, is known for being very beautiful. Many of the letters look similar, so when the writing is all together, their size is cohesive and makes a symmetric-looking page. For this same reason, English speakers think it is impossible to read .

This guide will go over Russian cursive writing for native or fluent Russian speakers and English speakers learning Russian. 

If you are looking for Cyrillic handwriting or Cyrillic alphabet cursive, you are in the right place. We go over Cyrillic in conjunction with the Russian language in this article.

So, you want to know how to write Russian cursive whether you speak Russian or English? Let’s find out. (Note: It is best to have a firm grasp on either the Russian or English language before jumping into this guide to learn Russian letters in cursive.)

Learning Russian? Watch this trailer for online russian classes that can yield big results in a short amount of time.

If You Are a Native Russian Speaker…

The premise of learning Russian cursive letters is to imagine fitting each letter into a box but slanting the top to the right to make a beautiful form that connects with others.

Some letters look just like their handwritten counterparts, while others look completely different. It depends on each letter, so it is crucial to check with a Russian handwriting alphabet and Russian cursive alphabet guide as you learn.

Some letters are written almost backward in their cursive form, which can be confusing, so practicing is essential. There are also multiple ways to write certain letters, which can make it tricky to learn the Russian cursive alphabet.

If You Are Learning Russian…

Many letters in Russian look like English letters, but that doesn’t mean that there is a clear English to Russian cursive code. This is because Russian and Slavic languages use the Cyrillic alphabet – as opposed to the Latin alphabet, which is used by English and many other European languages.

The Cyrillic alphabet has sounds that the Latin alphabet does not, and vice versa. Therefore, it does not translate the way that German or French does to English. In the same way that a native English speaker cannot read Chinese without learning the Chinese alphabet, so it is with Russian.

One of the biggest things to keep in mind is not to jump into Russian cursive practice if you don’t yet have your Russian alphabet handwriting down pat.

First Letter

The first letter of the Russian alphabet is the easiest one to learn; it looks like the English letter “A,” both in lowercase and uppercase. The cursive version is also the same as in English.

Second Letter

The second letter of the Russian alphabet makes the “buh” sound, but it looks almost like a music note. The cursive letter looks like an English cursive capital letter “T” with the round part of a lowercase letter “b” attached – this looks very similar to the handwritten Russian letter, just with some flow to it. You can also simplify it, depending on your personal preferences; some people even add a loop-de-loop to it on the bottom left side.

The lowercase cursive version looks just like a simply-written quaver , or eighth, note in music. Note: The Russian lowercase letter looks more like the music note than the Russian handwritten letter because the bottom “bellies” of the letter go in different directions.

Third Letter

The third letter of the Russian alphabet, handwritten, looks exactly like the English letter “B,” but it makes the “vuh” sound. Interestingly, the upper and lowercase letters, in Russian, both look like a capital “B,” just large and smaller. The uppercase Russian cursive version looks just like a cursive English capital “B,” while the lowercase letter looks like an English cursive lowercase “f.”

Fourth Letter

The fourth letter of the Russian alphabet makes the “gjuh” sound. Handwritten, it looks like an upside-down English capital “L” in both upper and lowercase. But in cursive, the uppercase Russian letter looks like a cursive English capital “T,” while the lowercase one looks like a backward, handwritten English “s” or a wavy English number “2.”

Fifth Letter

The fifth letter of the Russian alphabet looks like a teepee on top of some angled legs. It makes the “theh” sound, with a bit of a “vuh” thrown into the “th” part. One could argue that it almost makes an exaggerated “deh” sound, which makes sense because the Russian cursive capital letter looks just like the capital cursive English letter “D!”

It Takes Time to Learn

Each letter comes with its own rules, and they are all very interesting. One even looks similar to an English asterisk in its handwritten Russian form, but in Russian cursive, it looks like a cursive English “M” and “m” in both upper and lowercase.

Putting It All Together

As we’ve stated in our introduction, the handwritten Russian alphabet does not include letters that join or link together. Contrary-wise, Russian letters, cursive versions, do connect – and that is what makes them so fun and beautiful. 

The way to connect Russian cursive letters is the same as English cursive and does take some practice. The goal is to never pick up your pen in the middle of a word when you first learn. Eventually, you will find your own style that might break here or there, and some people call this stylized writing.

You will develop your own personal style as you keep writing and help you learn the Russian alphabet.

The name of the game is practice! Practice makes perfect in any skill, and how to write Russian cursive is no different. Remember that the more mistakes you make, the better you will get. 

More mistakes mean you tried more times, meaning you’re learning! By using the tools we provide, you will be a Russian cursive expert in no time. Good luck, and remember to go easy on yourself as you learn each Russian letter and put it all together to create beautiful Russian writing.

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How to Read Russian Cursive: A Beginner’s Guide

Russian cursive writing is an intriguing and often puzzling aspect of the Russian language. While it may appear daunting and confusing to beginners, understanding how to read Russian cursive is an essential skill for those looking to navigate handwritten texts, personal notes, and historical documents. In this beginner’s guide, we will unravel the mysteries of Russian cursive and provide you with the tools and techniques to confidently decipher handwritten Russian text.

Why does Russian cursive differ so drastically from printed Russian text? The answer lies in a combination of historical, cultural, and practical factors. Formally introduced in the Russian education system during the 18th century, Russian cursive was intended to increase writing speed and efficiency, particularly during the era of fountain pens. However, the elegance and artistic nature of cursive writing resulted in its continued use, even in the digital age. As a result, mastering Russian cursive is essential for any language learner or enthusiast interested in fully appreciating Russian culture, literature, and history. In this article, we will break down the basics of Russian cursive, provide clarity to its seemingly complex forms, and equip you with the necessary skills to embrace and conquer this unique writing style.

Table of Contents

Understanding the Basics of Russian Cursive

A. differences between russian cursive and printed cyrillic letters.

When learning to read Russian cursive, it is essential to understand the distinctions between cursive and printed Cyrillic letters. Unlike printed letters, Russian cursive characters generally appear more rounded and flow into each other, creating a continuous and connected script. This fluidity in the writing style can make it challenging for beginners to differentiate between letters and decipher words in cursive form.

B. Key features of Russian cursive

Russian cursive has several distinctive features that set it apart from other writing styles. One key feature is the use of loops, both large and small, which connect letters together. These loops facilitate the smooth transition between letters, allowing for a graceful, flowing script. Additionally, certain letters in Russian cursive may look different from their printed counterparts. For example, the cursive form of the letter “т” resembles an inverted “m,” while the printed form is more similar to the Latin letter “m.”

Another essential aspect of Russian cursive is the presence of “initial” and “final” letter forms. Initial forms are used at the beginning of a word or after certain letters, while final forms are used at the end of a word or when a letter is the last in a group. These variations in letter forms further contribute to the uniqueness of Russian cursive and its distinct appearance.

Overall, mastering the basics of Russian cursive involves familiarizing yourself with the differences between cursive and printed letters, as well as understanding the key features of this script style. By recognizing the fluid nature of Russian cursive and the specific shapes and forms each letter takes, you will be better equipped to decipher cursive writing and enhance your reading skills.

IFamiliarizing Yourself with the Russian Cursive Alphabet

Learning to read Russian cursive may seem like a daunting task, but with some practice and patience, it is certainly achievable. In this section, we will provide an overview of the Russian cursive alphabet and offer pronunciation tips to help you along the way.

A. Overview of the Russian cursive alphabet

The Russian cursive alphabet consists of 33 letters, which may have different forms depending on their position within a word. While some letters in cursive retain a similar shape to their printed counterparts, others may appear vastly different. It is important to familiarize yourself with these variations to accurately identify letters in cursive script.

B. Pronunciation tips for cursive letters

When reading Russian cursive, it is important to be aware of how certain letters are pronounced. Some letters in cursive may appear similar, making it crucial to rely on context and pronunciation clues to determine the correct letter. For example, the cursive letter “ш” (sh) may resemble the cursive letter “м” (m), but their pronunciation and usage differ significantly.

To improve your pronunciation skills, it is highly recommended to practice listening to native Russian speakers or utilizing resources that provide audio examples of the alphabet. This will help you familiarize yourself with the sounds associated with each cursive letter, enabling you to read more accurately.

By familiarizing yourself with the Russian cursive alphabet and practicing pronunciation, you will gain confidence in recognizing letters and forming words in cursive script. Remember, consistent practice and exposure to Russian cursive will strengthen your skills over time.

In the next section, we will delve into the step-by-step process of forming letters in Russian cursive and provide valuable tips to avoid common pitfalls. By mastering the basic letter forms, you will be well on your way to becoming proficient in reading and writing Russian cursive.

B. Common pitfalls to avoid when writing cursive letters

While learning Russian cursive, it’s common to make certain mistakes that can hinder your progress. Here are some common pitfalls to avoid:

1. Rushing: Take your time and avoid rushing through the writing process. Russian cursive requires precision and attention to detail. Slow and deliberate movements will help you form each letter accurately.

2. Overcomplicating letter forms: Keep in mind that simplicity is key in Russian cursive. Avoid adding unnecessary loops, curves, or embellishments to the letter forms. Stick to the basic shapes and strokes to maintain clarity and readability.

3. Neglecting proper letter slant: Russian cursive has a distinct slant, usually leaning to the right. Pay attention to the angle at which you write each letter to maintain consistency and aesthetic appeal.

4. Neglecting proper letter connections: Connecting letters smoothly is one of the defining features of Russian cursive. Be mindful of the letter connections and practice linking them in a way that creates a fluid and legible word.

By following this step-by-step guide and avoiding common pitfalls, you will gradually improve your ability to form letters in Russian cursive. Remember, practice makes perfect, so be persistent and patient with yourself as you develop your cursive handwriting skills.

Rules for Connecting Letters in Russian Cursive

A. understanding the concept of “hidden letters”.

When it comes to connecting letters in Russian cursive, there is a unique concept called “hidden letters.” In some cases, when certain letters are connected, one letter may not be fully formed or visible, appearing as a mere stroke or a loop. These hidden letters can be a bit confusing for beginners, but with practice, they become easier to identify.

For example, when the letters “o” and “n” are connected, the “o” becomes a loop-like shape that represents both letters. Similarly, when connecting “e” and “l,” the “e” does not appear as a complete letter but rather as a curved line that transitions smoothly into the “l.” Understanding this concept is essential to read and write Russian cursive accurately.

C. Practice exercises to improve letter connections

Improving your letter connections in Russian cursive requires practice and repetition. Here are some exercises to help you enhance your skills:

1. Copying exercises: Begin by copying simple words or sentences written in Russian cursive. Pay close attention to the joining points between letters and practice forming them accurately.

2. Tracing exercises: Find printable worksheets or use transparent sheets with sample cursive letters. Place these over your own writing and trace the connecting lines, focusing on maintaining a smooth flow.

3. Writing with rhythm: Gently tap a rhythm with your pen or pencil as you write, emphasizing the connections between letters. This rhythmic movement can help you develop a natural flow in your cursive writing.

Remember, practice makes perfect. By dedicating time to practicing letter connections in Russian cursive, you will gradually develop fluency and confidence in reading and writing this beautiful script.

Techniques for Improving Your Cursive Handwriting

A. importance of posture and pen grip for better writing.

When it comes to improving your cursive handwriting, proper posture and pen grip play crucial roles. Sitting up straight with your feet planted firmly on the ground allows for better control and stability while writing. Additionally, maintaining a relaxed yet firm grip on your pen or pencil is essential for achieving fluid and legible cursive letters.

B. Exercises to improve consistency and fluency in cursive writing

Consistency and fluency are key aspects of developing beautiful cursive handwriting. Here are a few exercises that can help you improve in these areas:

1. Controlled letter practice: Take a blank sheet of paper and slowly write each letter of the cursive alphabet, paying close attention to the form and proportion of each letter. Focus on achieving consistency in letter size, slant, and spacing.

2. Word and sentence practice: Choose a few words or short sentences and write them repeatedly in cursive. This exercise helps you develop the muscle memory required for writing letters and connecting them smoothly in different word combinations.

3. Speed drills: Set a timer for a short period, such as two minutes, and challenge yourself to write as many cursive letters or words as possible within that time frame. As you repeat this exercise regularly, you will notice an improvement in both speed and fluency.

4. Cursive copying: Find samples of well-executed cursive handwriting online or in print. Take the time to carefully copy these examples, paying attention to the details of each letter formation and connecting stroke. This exercise helps train your hand and eye coordination while familiarizing yourself with different styles of cursive writing.

Remember, practicing regularly and being patient with yourself is the key to improving your cursive handwriting. Consistency and dedication will yield significant improvements over time.

By incorporating these techniques and exercises into your practice routine, you will gradually see your cursive handwriting become more consistent, fluid, and aesthetically pleasing. Don’t be discouraged by initial difficulties—learning and mastering Russian cursive takes time, but the rewards are well worth it. Keep practicing, and soon enough you will be able to effortlessly read and write in Russian cursive.

C. Tips for correctly forming and identifying ligatures

To correctly form and identify ligatures in Russian cursive, it is crucial to understand the connections between the individual letters. Pay attention to the order in which the letters are written, as well as the direction and shape of the strokes. Practice tracing and copying ligatures to develop muscle memory and improve your ability to recognize them in handwritten texts.

Additionally, studying and analyzing handwritten texts, such as letters, notes, or passages from Russian literature, can help you familiarize yourself with various ligatures and their contexts. By observing and comparing different examples of ligatures, you can enhance your understanding and interpretation of cursive script.

Remember, consistency and practice are key to mastering ligatures in Russian cursive. Allocate regular time for writing exercises that focus on forming ligatures accurately. Over time, your muscle memory will improve, and you will be able to write and read ligatures naturally and effortlessly.

By mastering ligatures in Russian cursive, you will not only enhance your ability to read handwritten Russian texts but also improve your overall cursive writing skills. Take advantage of online resources, practice worksheets, and guidance from native Russian speakers to refine your understanding of ligatures and confidently navigate the beauty of Russian cursive.

Practice Reading Russian Cursive

A. start with simple handwritten texts.

To begin your journey of reading Russian cursive, it is important to start with simple handwritten texts. Look for samples of handwritten letters, notes, or postcards written in cursive. You can also find examples of handwritten texts in language textbooks or online resources. Starting with simple texts will allow you to focus on identifying individual letters and understanding their connection.

B. Gradually progress to more complex texts

Once you feel comfortable with reading simple handwritten texts, you can gradually progress to more complex ones. Look for longer handwritten passages, such as journal entries, poems, or short stories. Reading complex texts will help you develop your ability to recognize ligatures, understand the flow of the writing, and decipher words and sentences efficiently.

C. Resources and tools for practicing Russian cursive reading

There are various resources and tools available to help you practice reading Russian cursive. Online platforms offer handwriting practice sheets, worksheets, and exercises specifically designed for learning Russian cursive. These resources allow you to practice letter recognition, word deciphering, and improving your overall reading skills.

Additionally, there are language learning apps and websites that provide interactive exercises and games to enhance your cursive reading abilities. These tools often include audio pronunciations, which can further reinforce your understanding of cursive letters and their corresponding sounds.

Another valuable resource is joining online communities or forums dedicated to learning Russian. Interacting with native speakers or fellow learners who are studying Russian cursive can provide you with valuable tips, insights, and reading materials. They can also offer guidance and feedback on your progress.

In conclusion, practice is essential when it comes to learning to read Russian cursive. Starting with simple texts and gradually progressing to more complex ones will help you gain confidence and proficiency in deciphering handwritten Russian. With the aid of online resources, tools, and communities, you can enhance your reading skills and embrace the beauty of Russian cursive script. Keep practicing, and soon you will be able to read and appreciate the handwritten Russian texts with ease.

Common Challenges and Mistakes to Avoid

A. common difficulties beginners face while reading russian cursive.

Reading Russian cursive can be challenging for beginners, especially those who are accustomed to reading printed Cyrillic letters. Some common difficulties that beginners may face include:

1. Lack of familiarity: Russian cursive handwriting differs significantly from printed Cyrillic letters, making it difficult for beginners to recognize and understand the cursive script. This lack of familiarity can slow down the reading process and make it challenging to decipher words in cursive.

2. Variation in handwriting styles: Just like in any language, individuals have different handwriting styles. This variation can make it even more challenging for beginners to read Russian cursive, as they encounter different letter formations and connecting styles.

3. Lack of practice: Reading Russian cursive requires practice and exposure to handwritten texts. Without regular practice, beginners may struggle to improve their reading skills and become comfortable with the intricacies of cursive script.

B. Tips for overcoming challenges and identifying words in cursive script

While reading Russian cursive may present challenges, there are several tips that can help beginners overcome these difficulties and improve their ability to identify words in cursive script:

1. Study commonly used words: Start by familiarizing yourself with commonly used words written in cursive script. Practice reading these words aloud and writing them out yourself to improve recognition and recall.

2. Break down words into individual letters: When encountering an unfamiliar word in cursive, try to break it down into individual letters and compare them to their printed Cyrillic counterparts. This can help in deciphering the word and understanding its meaning.

3. Pay attention to context: Contextual clues can be invaluable when reading Russian cursive. Use surrounding words, sentence structure, and overall context to aid in understanding unfamiliar words or deciphering difficult handwriting.

4. Seek assistance from native speakers: When encountering challenging cursive text, seek guidance from native Russian speakers. They can provide insights and explanations that might be difficult to find elsewhere, helping to improve your reading skills.

5. Practice regularly: Consistent practice is key to improving your ability to read Russian cursive. Set aside dedicated time each day to read and practice with handwritten texts. Gradually increase the difficulty level as your skills improve.

By acknowledging and actively working to overcome these common challenges and mistakes, beginners can make significant progress in reading Russian cursive. With continued practice and exposure to handwritten texts, the ability to read and understand cursive script will become more natural and effortless.

X. Additional Tips and Resources for Learning Russian Cursive

A. utilizing online tutorials and learning materials.

In the digital age, online tutorials and learning materials have become invaluable resources for language learners. When it comes to learning Russian cursive, there are numerous websites and apps that offer interactive lessons, practice exercises, and handwriting worksheets specifically designed to improve your skills in reading and writing Russian cursive. These resources often provide step-by-step instructions and visual demonstrations to help you understand and master the intricacies of the script. Some popular online platforms include Duolingo, FluentU, and RussianPod101.

B. Joining language exchange programs to practice reading cursive

Language exchange programs provide a unique opportunity to connect with native Russian speakers who can not only help you improve your proficiency in spoken Russian but also assist you in deciphering and reading cursive handwriting. These programs enable you to engage in conversations and written exchanges with native speakers, allowing you to practice reading handwritten texts and receive feedback on your progress. Websites such as Tandem, HelloTalk, and ConversationExchange can help you find language exchange partners to practice reading Russian cursive.

C. Seeking guidance from native Russian speakers

No resource can match the expertise and guidance provided by a native Russian speaker. If you have the opportunity to interact with a native Russian speaker, whether it be a friend, family member, tutor, or language instructor, don’t hesitate to seek their assistance in learning Russian cursive. They can offer valuable insights, clarify any doubts, and provide real-time feedback on your reading skills. Moreover, discussing the nuances of the script and practicing with someone who uses Russian cursive regularly can greatly enhance your proficiency in reading and understanding handwritten texts.

By utilizing online tutorials and learning materials, joining language exchange programs, and seeking guidance from native Russian speakers, you can supplement your learning journey and enhance your skills in reading Russian cursive. Remember, practice makes perfect, and with persistence and dedication, you will gradually become more proficient in deciphering and appreciating the beauty of this unique script.

RecommendedConclusion

In conclusion, learning Russian cursive may seem like a daunting task at first, but with the right approach and resources, it can become an achievable and rewarding venture. This beginner’s guide has provided you with an overview of Russian cursive, its importance, and practical techniques to navigate this script.

Key takeaways from this article include understanding the differences between cursive and printed Cyrillic letters, familiarizing yourself with the Russian cursive alphabet, learning the basic letter forms, rules for connecting letters, techniques for improving your handwriting, mastering ligatures, and practicing reading cursive texts.

Remember to leverage online tutorials, join language exchange programs, and seek guidance from native Russian speakers to enhance your learning experience. Embrace the beauty of Russian cursive and continue your journey towards becoming proficient in reading and appreciating this mesmerizing script.

A. Recap of key points discussed in the article

In this beginner’s guide to reading Russian cursive, we have covered the basics of Russian cursive handwriting and provided helpful tips and resources to improve your skills. We started by understanding the differences between Russian cursive and printed Cyrillic letters, as well as the key features of Russian cursive. Then, we familiarized ourselves with the Russian cursive alphabet and learned pronunciation tips for cursive letters.

Moving on, we delved into the basic letter forms in Russian cursive, providing a step-by-step guide and highlighting common pitfalls to avoid. We also explored the rules for connecting letters in Russian cursive, including the concept of “hidden letters.” Practice exercises were included to help you improve your letter connections. Additionally, we discussed the importance of posture and pen grip, along with exercises to enhance consistency and fluency in your cursive handwriting.

We also tackled the topic of ligatures in Russian cursive, defining them and providing examples. We outlined common ligatures used in Russian cursive and offered tips for correctly forming and identifying ligatures.

Furthermore, we addressed the importance of practice and provided guidance on reading Russian cursive. Starting with simple handwritten texts and gradually progressing to more complex ones will help you develop your reading skills. We also mentioned resources and tools available to practice reading Russian cursive.

B. Encouragement for readers to embrace the beauty of Russian cursive and continue their learning journey

Learning Russian cursive may seem challenging at first, but with dedication and practice, you will be able to decipher and write it with ease. Embrace the beauty and elegance of this unique style of handwriting, as it plays a significant role in Russian culture.

By following the tips, techniques, and resources provided in this guide, you will become more confident in reading Russian cursive. Remember to be patient with yourself and celebrate each small achievement along the way.

Continue your learning journey by utilizing online tutorials and learning materials, joining language exchange programs to practice reading cursive with native speakers, and seeking guidance from those who are fluent in Russian. With determination and perseverance, you will conquer the challenges and become proficient in reading Russian cursive.

So, dive into the world of Russian cursive, and unlock a whole new level of understanding and appreciation for the language. Happy learning!

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All letters of the Russian alphabet in cursive

We will assume that you have already learned the Russian alphabet, so you can proceed to the next stage — learn handwritten letters.

Tips on how to learn to write in Russian cursive

If you nevertheless decide to master Russian handwriting, you have to work hard. Take about a month and start training. We offer a plan that will help you to achieve your goal.

1. Take the first week to study handwritten letters. Write each letter twice daily, referring to the sample.

2. In the second week, if you are sure that you have learned all the letters in writing, move on. Write down all the letters twice daily but from memory. Check with the sample after each time. The second task is to read a small handwritten text for 20 minutes a day.

3. Begin to connect letters and rewrite the text that you read in the previous week.

4. Devote the last week of the month to independent work. Write a few sentences about yourself: who you are, where you are from, what do you do, what are your hobbies. Write this text down daily for the rest of the week.

You will be able to implement this method if certain conditions are met. You should know the Russian alphabet well and you should know Rusian not lower than A2 so that you can communicate in everyday life and read simple texts.

You can reach level A2 in a relatively short period by enrolling in the School of Russian Language “Leader”. Choose a convenient learning option: in groups or individually, online or at school, and go ahead with mastering Russian as soon as possible.

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How to Learn to Write in Russian

Mastering Russian writing isn’t as hard as it seems.

And learning how to write in Russian is essential to truly becoming fluent in Russian.

So stop putting it off: Proceed to Step One in my seven-step process and start writing in Russian today!

1. Learn the Cyrillic alphabet.

Resources for learning the russian alphabet, 2. learn to produce the letters yourself..

• Resources for Learning to Produce Russian Letters 

3. Learn Russian cursive.

Resources for learning russian cursive, 4. learn to type in russian., resources for learning to type in russian, 5. start forming basic words with the letters., resources for forming basic words in russian, 6. practice russian writing by copying text from russian books., resources for copying russian text, 7. write in russian with online russian exercises, resources for russian exercises for writing purposes, and one more thing....

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

If you have any experience with the Russian language, you already know that Russian has a different alphabet from English. While we use the Roman (or Latin) alphabet to write English, Russian uses the Cyrillic alphabet, which originated (fun fact) in the 9th century.

There is good news and bad news when it comes to learning the Russian alphabet.

The good news is that some of the letters look, and even sound, the same or similar to English ones. These include letters like A , K , M , O and T . Other letters look similar, but don’t (or don’t always) have the same associated sound as in English, such as C (pronounced like the English S), B (pronounced like the English V) and E (pronounced like “yeh” ) .

The bad (but definitely not super bad) news is that some letters will look brand spanking new. However, that is great news for your brain, which will definitely get a boost from all the new letters you will become acquainted with. These include  Д (pronounced like a hard D, as in “dog”),  Я , (pronounced like “yah” ) and П  (pronounced like a hard P, as in “pig”).

You can find the full Russian alphabet here , and you can learn the Russian letters more efficiently by creating flashcards with the Russian letters on one side and the pronunciation using English letters on the other side . This will help you test yourself on the sound of each letter.

You can also purchase Russian flashcards as an alternative option. This set contains 33 cards that not only help you memorize letters, but offer a guide in pronunciation. Each card has the letter in upper and lower case, a pronunciation guide and a word that starts with the letter in Russian, along with an English translation. On the opposite side, you can find an image that starts with the letter to test your knowledge not only of the letter it starts with, but the Russian term for the image.

When memorizing foreign letters, we start by learning to pronounce a letter we see; however, to truly master a language, we have to reverse that process.

This requires listening to the letters said out loud and writing them down from memory. This is the only way to learn to write Russian on your own—by forming the letters in your mind and writing them without having a reference set in front of you.

Resources for Learning to Produce Russian Letters  

Thanks to the wonderful world of the internet, you can find many ways to practice writing in Russian.

You can start with these worksheets from Happy Child , which will help you practice writing and typing common phrases and vocabulary words. While the worksheets can  be used online, you can use them to practice your handwriting by printing them out. Fold the paper in half so you can only see the English or the Russian at one time. You can try copying the Russian, or translating the English into Russian.

Check out this YouTube video that teaches viewers the Russian alphabet .

The trick to utilizing this video for your needs is not to look at the screen! While this may seem counterproductive to using YouTube, this is a way of being able to test yourself and check your answers later. Listen to the letters pronounced a few times and write them down as fast as you can before the video moves on to another letter.

Another great resource is this Russian Learning Mat , which uses colorful visuals to engage you as you learn, as well as audio of every letter.

The steps above have likely helped you learn the Russian letters and their associated sounds, so feel free to congratulate yourself. However, don’t celebrate too much yet, as you still need to learn a whole other script— Russian cursive .

While in America, we don’t use cursive as much as we used to, Russians still rely on handwriting as a method of communication quite a bit.

Once you learn Russian printed letters, learning to handwrite them will be easier as you already know how they sound.

A few Russian cursive worksheets  is really all you need for this step. That and practice, practice, practice.

LinguaLift has an excellent resource for learning the often tricky cursive. Here, you’ll find clear images of how to form the cursive version of each Russian letter, as well as a PDF practice sheet you can download and print.

There are a number of apps that can help you practice with more feedback, like this Russian Cursive app for Android or “Write It!” for iOS . These might be good options if you prefer to learn on the go, and if you want a more guided and interactive way to learn. Russian handwriting apps often let you trace each letter, provide audio and examples and even practice recognizing each letter.

Although Russians still use pens and pencils to write, many are embracing the computer and typing away. Learning to type in Russian is essential for business purposes , finding Russian videos and other content and keeping up correspondence across the ocean.

Just as with learning cursive, learning to type in Russian will be fairly painless once you know the Cyrillic alphabet. All this will require is memorizing where Russian letters are placed on a keyboard and then working on your skills.

TypeIt provides access to a free Russian keyboard , which is fully functional. Simply type letters using your mouse and see them written in the field on the page.

You can also purchase Russian keyboard stickers or a keyboard cover and use your own keyboard to learn the placement of the letters.

When you are ready, you can take it a step further and set up your keyboard to type Russian . Like with learning cursive, this will be an ongoing process, and you will get more out of it after continuing with the steps below.

The last four steps had you learning individual letters, but writing requires the ability to form the letters into actual words. Remember how you learned to write in English—you started with basic words, such as “mom,” “dad,” “cat” and “hat.”

Do the same when learning to write in Russian—form the letters into short words to start writing on your own.

Watching videos with subtitles is a great way to compare the words you hear with how they’re written. You could use auto-generated subtitles on YouTube (though be forewarned that they’re not always accurate), or try to find a channel with proofread subtitles.

FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.

You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.

P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

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You can use the flashcards you made or purchased to form Russian words from letters. You can form any words you like, but here are some basic verbs to start with.

Or, you can make the process more fun with magnets. These Russian letter magnets  offer a colorful and easy way to utilize a surface (your fridge) to play around with word formations without making a mess on the floor!

This is also a good time to pull up a list of common words and phrases in Russian . Practice writing each word as many times as you need. For bonus points, try writing the words in cursive!

Russian words are infamous for being long, containing lots of hard consonant combinations and even letters that are very difficult to pronounce (such as hard and soft sounds).

As such, you can benefit from copying Russian text from books, magazines, blogs and other materials to familiarize yourself with proper Russian spelling.

A dual language Russian to English book is perfect not just for this step, but for improving your Russian overall . You can use the Russian portion of the text to practice copying words and sentences. Then, you can read the English translation to understand what you are reading and work on your comprehension.

You can use any Russian text to copy, but it’s a good idea to start from shorter works like Russian short stories . Another good option is poetry, as you can also use your writing practice to help you memorize Russian poems—a practice which is very much a facet of learning in Russian schools . Yale has a digital Russian poetry collection for learners that you can make use of for your writing practice.

If you’re looking for more of a challenge, you can try transcribing Russian audio into written Russian. Easy Pronunciation has a tool that lets you listen to words spoken out loud then select the sound you heard. Pull out a pen and paper and write down each word as you hear it, then check your spelling and writing against the answer. You can choose how easy or difficult the tests are, and which types of sounds they test you on.

The web offers a multitude of Russian exercises that can help you improve your writing skills. The trick is finding reputable sources that won’t lead you astray in your learning efforts.

These can include quizzes that test your knowledge of the Russian alphabet, games where you can write in answers or anything else that gets you writing.

The best way to practice writing online for more intermediate and advanced purposes is finding exercises that ask you to write your answers instead of choosing from pre-set choices.

Reading comprehension tests are perfect for more advanced learners, as these allow you to see words written first in a paragraph, and then practice writing answers to open-ended questions. Everyday Russian Language offers a selection of reading material with English paragraph-by-paragraph translations, followed by questions and answers about what you read, in Russian with English translations.

Russian for Free has many grammar exercises, which you can use to both strengthen your grammar knowledge and practice your writing.

Remember that writing in Russian is required for really knowing the language.

Follow this seven-step approach to truly write in Russian like a native.

If you love learning Russian and want to immerse yourself with authentic materials from Russia, then I should also tell you more about FluentU .

FluentU naturally and gradually eases you into learning the Russian language and culture. You'll learn real Russian as it's spoken by real Russian people!

FluentU has a very broad range of contemporary videos. Just a quick look will give you an idea of the variety of Russian-language content available on FluentU:

FluentU makes these native Russian videos approachable through interactive transcripts. Tap on any word to look it up instantly.

Access a complete interactive transcript of every video under the Dialogue tab. Easily review words and phrases with audio under Vocab .

All definitions have multiple examples, and they're written for Russian learners like you. Tap to add words you'd like to review to a vocab list.

And FluentU has a learn mode which turns every video into a language learning lesson. You can always swipe left or right to see more examples.

The best part? FluentU keeps track of your vocabulary, and gives you extra practice with difficult words. It'll even remind you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. You'll have a 100% personalized experience.

Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

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K nowledge of the Russian language opens up a vast, diverse world, stretching from the Carpathian Mountains to the expanses of Siberia.  As well as providing the traveller with the lingua franca of over 15 countries and unrecognised territories, the Russian language is intrinsically connected with a rich culture of world-class literature, art, music, cinema, and architecture.  Russian is an excellent choice for a new language to learn, and here we outline exactly how you should go about achieving this goal.

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How to Use This Guide

For anyone learning a foreign language, nothing is more important than choosing the right learning resources.  However, as with most languages, the amount of available material for learning Russian is overwhelming, and the quality varies enormously.

So what should you buy?

Most resource guides on the internet simply throw together a vast list of virtually everything related to the language in question, leaving you just as bewildered as you were before.

We know from years of experience that the Pareto principle strongly applies to language learning: you really do get 80% of the results from 20% of the materials you buy.  If we had only known at the time how to separate the textbook-wheat from the chaff, we would have saved a considerable amount of money!

And so we have come up with the solution: an all encompassing, fully-updated handbook , advising you on the best books, videos, websites, podcasts and courses to help you on your path to native-level fluency.

We appreciate that you may not have time to read through the whole of the guide, or may just be looking to improve a particular skills.  So, in order to help you find exactly what you need with ease, we’ve grouped our recommended material into the following colour-coordinated categories:

Grammar & Vocabulary

Of course, the material that you use will vastly depend on your current Russian level.  (After all, there's nothing more dispiriting than working through a course that's too easy or too difficult for you!)  That’s why we have divided the guide into three sections: beginners, intermediate, and advanced – showing you exactly what you need for the stage you’re currently at.

Beginners - Grammar & Vocabulary

Grammar and vocabulary are the skeleton around which your language skills develop - you can't do anything until you've got to grips with the basics.  Obviously it's vital to choose the right material for the job.  So let's dive straight in and look at the best textbook on the market for beginners

The New Penguin Russian Course: A Complete Course for Beginners

All-in-all the best course available for beginners. It explains all essential grammar points clearly and thoroughly. Its end-of-chapter exercises and the glossary at the back of the book are useful for building up a good stockpile of basic vocabulary. Should be all you need for grammar to take you up to intermediate level.

Pay no attention to its dreary cover - the Penguin Course is far and away the best Russian textbook on the market for beginners. Every fresh-faced language newcomer has to wade through a sea of trumped-up phrasebooks, masquerading as 'complete courses'. This, however, is the real deal and will get you to a solid B1 level .

Don't expect any cheer or colour though: the style is no-nonsense and could put some people off who need to be eased into a new language. Try to look past this: all of the grammatical points are explained extremely well, with plenty of examples and supplementary exercises . The glossary and grammar tables at the back of the book come in useful if you ever forget any material that you've already covered.

Once you have worked your way through all 26 chapters (starting with the Cyrillic alphabet, and culminating in a short story by Chekhov), you should be able to hold your own in simple conversations and read newspapers (with the help of a dictionary).

The only thing that stops this being the ultimate Russian beginner's resource is the lack of accompanying listening exercises . But as we have that covered below, it really isn't too much of a problem at all.

The New Penguin Russian Course - Our Rating

• Our favourite ones are Russian Lessons and Russian Learn . They are organised in a neat and user-friendly way and are regularly updated.  Although they differ slightly in style and approach, both cover almost exactly the same content as each other, so just choose the one that appeals to you most.
• Another option is Alpha Dictionary .  If you let your eyes adjust to the garish magenta colour-scheme and the hideous 90s interface, you’ll realise that this is a real gem of a website .  What we particularly like about it is that it actually goes slightly beyond the scope of the Penguin Course and provides explanations for some particularly tricky grammatical topics, such as correctly translating ‘for’ and setting up T-K clause constructions.

The Big Silver Book of Russian Verbs

Solid reference book, detailing the full conjugations of 555 common Russian verbs. Numerous example sentences demonstrate how each verb is used in various contexts (including idoms). There is also a sizeable dictionary of 4,000 additional verbs, showing which conjugation pattern each one follows so you know how to form them correctly. A worthwhile purchase for beginners.

The Russian verb is undoubtedly one of the most challenging aspects of the language – crack it and everything else will soon fall into place .

This is easier said than done.  With a confusing array of conjugation patterns, verbs of motion, and countless irregulars , Russian verbs present a serious challenge to new learners. 

Thankfully, you have at your disposal the Big Silver Book of Russian Verbs. It explains how each verb’s conjugation follows one of six approximate paradigms, and shows that once you have memorised these patterns, the process of learning how to use individual verbs becomes infinitely easier.

It then delivers on its promise and sets out the full conjugations of 555 common verbs , as well as listing the infinitives to 4,000 other ones in the back of the back (with their pattern number next to them).

A warning though: the six-paradigm system is not universal – other books may state that there are really only three conjugation groups, with a few minor subgroups that only differ superficially. Be careful not to get mixed up!

The Big Silver Book of Russian Verbs - Our Rating

It’s not as comprehensive as a dictionary or the Big Silver Book, so you shouldn’t completely rely on it. But it does have some nice features that make up for this downside: stress indicators, pronunciation hints, related verb lists, etc.

The site’s owner claims that he frequently adds new words to the database so this should become an even more powerful tool in time.

The Russian Grammar Channel

Concise videos on essential topics in Russian grammar from a doctor of Slavic linguistics. Presented in a clear, friendly manner, these are the best videos on YouTube to help beginners get to grips with the nuts and bolts of the language. An excellent supplement to the Penguin Course.

There are dozens of Russian language channels on YouTube, but none of them are as focused or as useful as Dr Curtis Ford’s Russian Grammar Channel.  

Dr Ford knows the Russian language inside-out.   But what differentiates his channel from the many other excellent alternatives is his ability to break down complex grammatical concepts into manageable chunks.  

The videos are all professionally produced and use plenty of fresh examples to solidify your knowledge.

The Russian Grammar Channel - Our Rating

The Oxford Russian Dictionary

The undisputed king of dictionary series, the Oxford Russian Dictionary contains half a million words, phrases, and translations. Recent stylistic and layout improvements have made it much easier to find the word you need in its correct context. Fully updated to include contemporary business, technical and computing terminology. The best Russian dictionary out there.

Dictionaries are expensive, so you don’t want to keep buying new ones on a regular basis. For this reason, it makes sense to get the best one available straight away.

With half a million words and phrases, you’ll almost certainly find a translation for whatever it is you need.  One of the best features of the Oxford series (that is often lacking in rival dictionaries) is the care they take to provide translations for words in all of their contexts, including idioms, sayings, and figurative usage. Look up a simple word, like ‘hand’, for instance, and you’ll see what we mean: it can be used in dozens of different ways, and doesn’t just refer to the human appendage.

Dictionaries are often criticised for not keeping up to date with modern technology and innovation. The Oxford series, however, are frequently updated, meaning that if you get the most recent edition you can be sure that it will stay relevant for a good few years.

The Oxford Russian Dictionary - Our Rating

Russian Learners' Dictionary: 10,000 Words in Frequency Order

Lists the 10,000 most frequently used Russian words (with English translations), starting from most commonly used downwards. The first 1,500 also come with example sentences. Excellent resource for filling in any important gaps in your vocabulary. Can also be used to provide a rough estimate of your vocabulary size.

When you consider that the average native speaker knows about 20-35,000 words , it’s clear that this book will do wonders for your Russian if you have the stamina to get to the end.

The dictionary allows you to follow a systematic programme of vocabulary learning – master the most common words and then move on to the rarer ones.

Minimum Vocabulary Required for Each CEFR Level

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One negative, however, is that it only gives limited definitions. You will probably want to cross-check with another dictionary to make sure you know what each word means across different contexts.

Russian Learners' Dictionary - Our Rating

Anki is a spaced repetition flashcard programme. It uses an algorithm that learns which words you find easy to remember and which ones don’t, and adjusts how frequently it tests you on these particular words accordingly. It is completely free and easy to install.

Everyone learns vocabulary in their own way – some people simply suck words in like a sponge and don’t need to make any active effort; for others, nothing seems to stick unless they learn it off by heart.

If you’re the former – great! If not, Anki will prove invaluable.

Essentially, Anki is a flashcard app. But what differentiates it from the hundreds of competitors is the spaced repetition algorithm that it uses. This means that it is able to remember which words you find more difficult to recall than others and to test you on them more frequently.   

While some of the settings can be a little fiddly, and synchronisation between phones and computers can play up, it is generally an extremely reliable app and one that we wished we had used from day one of our language learning.

Even if you only use Anki for half an hour each day, you’ll see marked improvements in your vocabulary. 

Anki - Our Rating

The good thing about Anki is that sometimes you don’t even have to compile vocabulary decks yourself. If you search around on the internet, you can sometimes find pre-made decks that you can import into your folders.

One such deck, created by Neri, displays 5,000 Russian sentences sorted from easiest to hardest. It’s a great way to gradually build up set-phrases and connecting words. You can download the deck from here .

Beginners - Reading

Choosing reading material is not easy when you’ve just started learning a foreign language. The vast majority of books and newspapers available to you will be too challenging at this point, and yet, equally, you can’t stay tethered to the artificially simplistic exercises in your textbooks for too long.

So where is the best place to start once you’re ready to venture out into the world of literature?

Many language guides come out with the same suggestion: start with children’s books. This is TERRIBLE advice. There is nothing easy about children’s literature – especially for learners of Russian! Although the concepts and storylines are simplistic enough to be enjoyed by toddlers, you face a number of surprisingly tricky linguistic challenges, such as a confusing array of diminutives, strange vocabulary, and irregular sentence structure.

A far better option would be to start off with something aimed at older children/teenagers . The vocabulary in these books is still pretty simple, but the grammar is often more regular than those aimed at younger readers.

The Adventures of Tintin

Classic comic book series by Belgian artist, Hergé. Fun and interesting stories with non-complex language and sentence structure. Excellent for beginner readers to build their colloquial comprehension. Entire series can be found here .

If you’ve worked through about half of the Penguin Course, you should find it relatively easy to read one of the Tintin books .

As well as being great stories in themselves, the comic book format means that you’re reading succinct speech bubbles, rather than long sentences. This makes for good, easy practice texts while you’re still mastering trickier grammatical elements, like participles and relative clauses.

New Penguin Parallel Text: Short Stories in Russian

Classic short stories with the Russian original on the left hand page and the English translation on the opposite page. All stories are from the twentieth century and feature writers that readers may not be familiar with, giving a fresh perspective on Russian literature.

When you’ve finished the textbook the best thing to do is to read some Russian texts with parallel translations . Having to go back and forth between the book you’re reading and a dictionary can be incredibly frustrating, and often saps a lot of the fun out of reading.

This is the solution: collections of classic short stories from the Soviet and post-Soviet eras with English translations on the opposite page.

Beginners - Writing

At this stage, most of your writing needs will be taken care of by the Penguin Course, which contains plenty of sentence-formation exercises.  But if you want a little extra practice, you should investigate the Ruslan workbooks

Ruslan Student Workbook

A decent workbook with over 200 written exercises to supplement a beginner’s Russian course. The content is colourful and attractive, and features some interesting cultural insights. It is designed to be used alongside the Ruslan communicative course, but can also be used as a standalone product.

Sadly, it’s a fact that there is a real paucity of material to help beginners improve their written Russian.  This means that the Ruslan series gets on our list by default, and not because we think it is an excellent workbook.

With around 200 written exercises it does what it says on the tin, and the attractive visual content and interesting cultural highlights mean that it is perfectly usable.  However, there is nothing particularly special about Ruslan, and it is as yet unclear how effective it is as a standalone product (there is a coursebook that you buy as well). 

Ruslan Student Workbook - Our Rating

Russian Handwriting

A step-by-step workbook that teaches Russian cursive handwriting. Each letter is broken down into clear steps that show you how to write it cursively. Lots or practice in the form of example letters, words, phrases, and sentences. Three separate volumes in case you get through the first one and want more practice.

Handwriting is a bit like crooked teeth – the earlier you sort it out the easier your life will be in the future . 

The majority of Russian textbooks will only use the print alphabet and omit the cursive version entirely. The reason for this is obvious: cursive can be extremely confusing!  While each letter looks quite distinct in print, in cursive a lot of the letters look almost identical:

This is just something we have to deal with.  And while the Penguin Course – to its credit – does have a chapter dedicated to cursive, it moves on from it pretty quickly, never to return.

Don’t let yourself experience the shock of sticking solely to print while learning, only to go to Russia to find that a huge amount of writing is done in cursive. These workbooks provide plenty of practice.  Although they are priced slightly cheekily, in the long run they are worth the initial investment.

Russian Handwriting - Our Rating

Beginners - speaking.

Get speaking as soon as you can ! It’s the hardest (and most important) language skill, but the one that we most often neglect.

Although you could get a private tutor straight off the bat, it may be cheaper and more constructive to enrol on an evening course in your city.

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The hourly prices of these courses are often twice as cheap as those that a native speaker will charge for one-to-one tuition in your city. On the other hand, a large class will limit the amount of time you get to speak, and sitting patiently while the inevitable class laggard struggles through material that you mastered weeks ago can be incredibly irritating.

Well-reviewed Russian courses in selected cities include:

• New York - ABC Languages
• Los Angeles - Santa Monica Language Academy
• Chicago - Cloudberry Language School
• Houston - Glasscock School of Continuing Studies
• Philadelphia - Bryn Mawr College
• Phoenix - Arizona Language Institute
• San Diego - San Diego Russian School
• Dallas - Russian School of Dallas
• San Jose - San Jose Learning Center
• Toronto - Hansa Language Centre
• Vancouver - International House
• London - Pushkin House Russian Language Centre , School of Slavonic and East European Studies Evening Courses
• Sydney - University of Sydney Centre for Continuing Education

Beginners - Listening

Here we narrow down the best courses, channels, and podcasts for beginners to take their listening skills to the next level

Rocket Russian

The best online Russian course for beginners looking to kickstart their listening skills. Packed full of targeted audio and writing exercises, all organised thematically. Seamless transition from desktop to mobile app, and vice versa. No subscription – a reasonable one-off fee unlocks the entire platform for life.

Incredible online language learning system. Huge number of audio and video podcast lessons, extensive vocabulary lists, personalised learning programmes, PDF worksheets, review quizzes, and many more tools. Dedicated friendly staff and frequently updated content make this an excellent resource to get your listening off the ground.

In compiling this guide we trialled over a dozen of the top online Russian courses.  Rocket Russian stood out as easily the best of the bunch – here’s why:

The content is thematic

We are huge fans of thematic vocabulary learning (Using Russian Vocabulary, for instance, is an essential resource to get) as we have found that structured learning is the best way to keep words in your long-term memory. We were really pleased to see that the team at Rocket Russian share this viewpoint and organise their lessons along thematic lines.

The mobile app is brilliant

Most language apps come across as little more than half-hearted afterthoughts. Some platforms even have the audacity to charge you extra for it. Rocket Russian’s mobile app (free for both iOS and Android) has been designed excellently and was far more intuitive than all of its rivals.

It doesn't smother you with unnecessary features

Rocket Russian only provides you with the tools you need to make real progress with your Russian – interactive audio lessons, detailed writing exercises, and an excellent narrative story which solidifies your situational vocabulary.

Everything is 100% downloadable

This means that you can sit down and get all of the material in one place – no need to keep going in and out of the site itself to use its contents.

Real-life audio from the start

The sooner a student weans themselves off what we call ‘teacher-speak’, the sooner they will understand real conversations. This is what Rocket Russian does from the very beginning, using authentic dialogues to build your listening skills up.

No subscription

Almost all online language courses nowadays charge for monthly/yearly subscriptions, meaning that over time they turn out to be very expensive. With Rocket Russian, however, once you’ve paid the one-off fee you get access to the full platform for life. Although the price may seem a bit steep, you then fully own all of the lessons and downloadable material inside – you’re not ‘renting it’. This means that in the long run Rocket Russian is probably the cheapest course on the market.

Give it a go!

Sign up for Rocket Russian's free trial here:

RussianPod101

We are naturally suspicious of online language courses, as the vast majority do not deliver on their promises – RussianPod101 is one of the few exceptions.

For a very reasonable price you gain access to a veritable treasure trove of Russian learning tools and resources, including:

High quality audio and video podcast lessons

Printable pdf lesson notes, 2000 most common words list, entertaining review quizzes, database of russian grammar constructions, 1-to-1 direct instruction from native russians, interactive pronunciation comparison tool, portable survival phrases centre, a personalised learning programme.

Although the lessons are probably a bit on the easy side for advanced learners, for beginners this is an absolute must-have resource.  The sheer quantity of audio and video lessons alone makes it far and away the most efficient way to improve your Russian listening skills .

RussianPod101 has been expanding steadily for the last few years thanks to its dedicated team.  As it is continuously adding new content to the site you can be sure that you will always have fresh material to practice with.

RussianPod101 - Our Rating

Interested.

If you want to make sure that RussianPod101 is the right product for you, have a look at our detailed review

While the online courses that we’ve reviewed above are excellent, make sure you don’t neglect the thousands of free YouTube channels dedicated to teaching Russian:

Amazing Russian

Weekly Russian

Huliganov's Russian Course

Amazing Russian is hands down the best YouTube channel out there for beginners looking to improve their listening skills.

The reason why we are so enthusiastic is because it is rare to come across such a practical and educational channel on YouTube.   Most ‘learn Russian’ channels rely heavily on gimmicks and flashy appearances without delivering much substance.   But if you want to make real headway with your listening then this is the channel for you.

The videos, mostly dealing with everyday situations, effectively ease students into the listening comprehension with a steady speaking pace, core vocabulary, and optional subtitles.

Weekly Russian is a bit different from other channels. Instead of going over the (admittedly important) mundane practicalities of everyday life, Natalia posts videos covering music, poetry, cartoons, films, all with English subtitles.

Despite the channel’s name, it is updated quite infrequently, but still definitely worth subscribing to.

One of the nicest ways to get into learning Russian is Viktor Dmitrievich Huliganov’s channel.   They start by going over a letter of the alphabet/simple grammatical topic, before telling a classic Russian joke, and finally ending with a Russian song.

Beginners - Bonus

Russian Keyboard Stickers

High-quality transparent stickers for laptop keyboards. Versions for both black and white keyboards available.

Unless by some extraordinary coincidence you bought your computer in the former Soviet Union, your keyboard won’t have the Cyrillic alphabet on it.

In time, this will prove to be a real annoyance , especially as there are so many great resources on the internet that require you to type in Russian.

Fortunately, the solution is both simple and cheap: you can find a range of transparent Cyrillic stickers that sit neatly on your keyboard without obscuring the original Latin symbols.

Beginners | Intermediate | Advanced  

Intermediate - Grammar & Vocabulary

The Penguin Course does a really good job in laying a solid grammatical foundation.   By the end of it you will confident enough to have non-trivial conversations with Russian speakers.   However, you will also realise that you have only scratched the surface, and that there is still a huge amount left to learn. In order to progress past this point, you need a broader resource.

A Comprehensive Russian Grammar

The Russian grammar bible. Period. No serious student of Russian should be without a copy of this authoritative grammar reference book. Covers virtually every topic you can think of, using fresh, interesting vocabulary to illustrate key points. Its structure layout allows students to master Russian grammar systematically.

If the Penguin Course was the tip of the grammar iceberg, this is the massive bulk floating under the water.  

It is difficult to convey how useful this book is for any student of Russian who wants to make real progress beyond the beginner’s level.   This 630-page reference work is encyclopaedic in its breadth and depth : its topics include pronunciation, punctuation, noun formation, verbs of motion, particles, diminutives, participles, gerunds, prepositions, word order, etc. Basically all of the rules – important and obscure – that you need to develop a robust grasp on how the language really works.

The example sentences are all taken from real literary and non-literary Russian sources, and are a breath of fresh air from the typically boring constructions that language books normally rely on.

A highly recommend resource .

A Comprehensive Russian Grammar - Our Rating

Using Russian Vocabulary

Divided into 18 thematic topics, this book provides the reader with over 5,000 Russian words and their translations. Each topic is broken down into three levels, starting with the most basic words and building up to some quite advanced (and obscure) vocabulary. Engaging self-study tasks at the end of each section and etymological insights make this an enjoyable and productive learning resource.

For those of you who have studied other languages, you may be familiar with Cambridge University Press’s excellent ‘ Using X Vocabulary ’ series.   If not, you will have to take our word that this is an invaluable textbook, that will raise all aspects of Russian proficiency.

Learning vocabulary can sometimes feel like a slightly random and chaotic experience – we get to grips with some areas quickly, only to discover (at just the wrong time!) that we have embarrassingly large gaps in our knowledge.

This is the solution. The book is divided into eighteen section (the natural world, industry, leisure & tourism, the physical body, etc.), and each section is divided into three subsections.   The first subsection contains basic vocabulary, whereas the last one will prepare you to authoritatively discuss the topic in question.  

This means that you can pick or choose sections depending on your strengths and interests , or, alternatively, work your way through it systematically.

Combined with Anki , it is the single best way to accumulate a large enough word base to sit the B1-C1 exams.

Intermediate - Reading

At this point you will feel ready to take off the training wheels and start reading some Russian literature in the original.

But there’s one thing you should know: not all classic writers are created equally when it comes to the difficulty of the works .   For example, the intermediate student who begins with one of Gogol’s short stories or Platonov’s novels will have a hard time getting through it.   The style and structure that these authors employ, make their books devilishly difficult to read.

Chekhov - The Collected Short Stories

Collected short stories from one of the masters of Russian literature. Tales in the volume include: ‘The lady with the Dog’, ‘The Princess’, ‘The Post’, and ‘Verochka’.

Collected short stories from one of the masters of Russian literature. Tales in the volume include: ‘The lady with the Dog’, ‘The Princess’, ‘The Post’, and ‘Verochka’. .

bookmonsterzero

Fortunately, there is a good place starting point: we recommend Chekhov .  

The way that Chekhov writes means that he is ideal for the intermediate student: his style is solid and sensible, the realism of his stories prevent confusion, and his choice of words – although firmly rooted in the 19 th century Russian tradition – are never flowery or redundant.

Who keeps the tavern and serves up the drinks? The peasant. Who squanders and drinks up money belonging to the peasant commune, the school, the church? The peasant. Who would steal from his neighbor, commit arson, and falsely denounce another for a bottle of vodka? The peasant. Anton Chekhov in Peasants

What’s more, his best writing was done in the form of short stories .   Even at this point you will rely heavily of a dictionary, and this means it will take you much longer to read one page of Russian than it would something written in your native language.   Reading a 10-page short story is an achievable task; being a hero and slogging through the Brothers Karamazov will not be much fun – yet!  

Chekhov Short Stories - Our Rating

Advanced Russian through History

Serious book covering the entire span of Russian and Soviet history, broken down into 36 concise chapters. Specifically designed for ambitious Russian students that want to gain greater historical awareness and improve their academic vocabulary. Online exercises and mini-lectures included.

If you want a more structured approach to getting your reading up, then Advanced Russian through History is a good option.

As you work through the 36 chronological chapters , taking you from Kievan Rus’ up to the Post-Soviet Era, you will notice that the difficulty of the text gradually becomes more challenging.   However, this progression is so incremental that you never feel too far out of your comfort zone.

Vocabulary keys, high-quality learning tasks, and mini-lectures (found on the publisher’s website ) make this a worthwhile book to buy.

Plus, it’s a fun way to learn more about Russian history!

Advanced Russian through History - Our Rating

It would also be a good idea to start reading the news in Russian. That way you will have a constant stream of new material covering a diverse range of topics.

All of the major Russian newspapers – Vedomosti , Kommersant , Novaya Gazeta – are worth reading, but our favourite website is the BBC’s Russian service .   It follows the rest of the BBC’s policy of using simple, clear diction and produces good, impartial articles on all major stories concerning Russia and the former Soviet Union.

In addition, the majority of the videos that you will find in the multimedia section now come with Russian subtitles – something that you will struggle to find elsewhere.

Intermediate - Writing

Wade’s Grammar is such an intimidating brick of a book that it can be difficult to know where to begin with it.   Because you now have so much information at your disposal you need an effective way to get it in your brain and keep it there.

Russian Grammar Workbook

Excellent workbook to accompany Wade’s grammar textbook. Crammed full of exercises to drill you on virtually everything you need to get your writing and speaking up to an advanced level.

Excellent workbook to accompany Wade’s grammar textbook. Crammed full of exercises to drill you on virtually everything you need to get your writing and speaking up to an advanced level. w

Fortunately, there is also a grammar workbook that can be used independently or in conjunction with the textbook.  

Both books share the same layout and subsection breakdown , so you can synchronise your grammar with written practice.   It features over 230 sets of exercises that involve all sorts of exercises: translation practice, sentence formation, etc.

Although it is only 270 pages, and some reviewers think it is a little on the pricey side for the number of exercises, it is worth pointing out that each of these ‘questions’ has multiple component parts.   This means that, given its size, you are getting a lot more value for money than this may suggest.  

A Russian Grammar Workbook - Our Rating

A Guide to Essay Writing in Russian

Ideal for high school or university students, this book is designed to help readers improve their essay writing skills in Russian. Contains grammar reference, key thematic vocabulary, and practical writing advice, as well as plenty of written exercises. Themes include climate, economics, politics, and organised crime.

All language learners have been set those uninspiring writing tasks from time to time: “write me an essay about what you got up to at the weekend”, “what is your favourite holiday destination”, etc.

What is so irritating about these topics is that, although the content is so simple a child could talk about them confidently, it can be surprisingly tricky to structure them properly.

Essay writing is a skill, and this well-written book will teach you how to excel at it.   Each thematic chapter starts with a grammatical guide, giving useful information on important aspects like conjunctions and word order, before presenting the reader with a series of exercises and essay questions.  

Each essay exercise comes with a template answer to help you develop the right instincts when faced with the real deal in an exam or professional situation.

A Guide to Essay Writing in Russian - Our Rating

Russian for Business Studies

Ideal guide for those that want to use their Russian for business purposes. Follows BCP’s general format of grammar, vocabulary, and written exercises. In particular, it is a nice way to learn those set phrases and pleasantries that pervade every office environment. Topics includes privatisation, entrepreneurship, advertising, and the banking system.

Also in BCP’s textbook series is Russian for Business Studies.   Like the Guide to Essay Writing, this book focuses on the specific grammar and vocabulary that will come in useful in a business context, before cementing this knowledge with a range of written exercises.

It was written in 2000 and doesn’t appear to have been updated since, leaving it vulnerable to the charge of being obsolete.   However, having worked through it, we can confirm that a surprisingly large proportion of the words are still used today, meaning that it’s still worth buying this book.

Of course, you won’t find up-to-date IT and technological terminology, so you will have to look elsewhere for this.   But if you are just interested in a general office-focused business textbook, this will do the job.

Russian for Business Studies - Our Rating

Intermediate - speaking.

In the long run, the only way to improve your Russian speaking is to speak Russian. A lot. For a long time.

If you’re at university and are majoring in Russian, your course should involve a year abroad in a Russian-speaking country.   This is obviously in an incredible opportunity that will give you give you the complete immersion that you need to push yourself out of your Anglophonic comfort zone.

If, however, you are studying independently, it might be difficult to replicate this experience.   You probably won’t be able to take months off from work to study in Russia. There, of course, are a lot of private language schools in all major cities of the former Soviet Union that offer short-term language lesson packages – Liden & Denz , Russianlab , and Language Link are three of the most popular.  

But the high prices that these centres charge might well mean that they are outside your budget.   Taking into account flights and living expenses in pricy cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg, you could easily burn through a few thousand dollars for a couple of weeks’ worth of tuition.

But don’t despair! There is a language school that offers excellent Russian lessons and a welcoming homestay experience with a local family , all for a very affordable price: The London School of Languages and Culture in Bishkek .

Bishkek is the capital of Kyrgyzstan , a Central Asian country that was formerly part of the Soviet Union and the Russian Empire before it.   As such, everyone in the country speaks Russian as a first or second language.   This, couple with the fact that the cost of living is more than ten times cheaper than in Russia, makes it the perfect location to learn Russian for those on a budget.

The London School was founded in 1998, and since then has earned a reputation amongst Russian students as an honest and professional institution .   All of the admin involved in organising your stay in Kyrgyzstan (visa, airport pickup, accommodation and meal arrangements) is handled by the school’s competent English-speaking team.

The most important thing to note are the incredible prices: an hour’s worth of one-to-one private tuition with a qualified native speaker will only set you back $5-8 – there is quite simply nowhere else in the world that offers such value for money!

The lessons are top-notch as well.   The school uses its own online teaching system via classroom whiteboard projector screens, meaning that all of your modular lessons will follow the official structure of the course.   All of the teachers that taught us were friendly, knowledgeable, and highly professional .

If you take on the intensive course (20 hours per week), each school day will have a few hours of grammar in the morning followed by conversation and literature practice after lunch.   You will also be expected to complete homework for each class.   So you can expect to be very busy throughout your time in Kyrgyzstan!

Lessons finish at around 3 o’clock, giving you plenty of time to socialise and explore the city.   Bishkek is a pleasant city to live in: it has plenty of bars, restaurants, musical and theatrical performances to keep you entertained.   What is more, levels of English competency are generally very low in Kyrgyzstan, so you won’t have much trouble striking up a conversation with locals in Russian, only for them to switch to fluent English within a few seconds (as often happens in Moscow and St. Petersburg).

  With regards to living arrangements, you have two basic options: either live in the student dormitories that are located in the upper floors of the school itself, or live with a local family as a homestay arrangement (vetted and organised by the London School).   If you do the former you will spend a lot of your free time socialising with other English-speaking students, which is why we recommend that go for the homestay option.  

We guarantee you that you will learn just as much Russian by simply taking part in daily life with your host family as you do from the formal lessons.   Kyrgyz culture highly values hospitality , so you can be sure of a warm welcome and involvement in all of the family’s social life.

The school doesn’t offer any tuition over the weekend, but they do offer lots of extracurricular activities, including: horseback riding, bazaar visits, and mountain treks.

Of course, you can also organise excursions yourself – Kyrgyzstan is a beautiful mountainous country with loads to see and do.   We strongly recommend that you take the time to see Ala Archa National Park , Issuk-Kul Salt Lake , Osh , Karakol , and Arslanbob .  

No matter how long you are able to study at the London School you will come back feeling that your Russian has improved immeasurably.

The London School in Bishkek - Our Rating

But if you’re really not in a position to spend some time in a Russian-speaking country, the next best thing would be to find a language exchange partner in your home country.

If you’re fortunate enough to have a Russian community in your city, then there will be plenty of opportunities to get to know people and practice your Russian with them.   In theory at least…

Although America, Canada, and the UK are some of the most diverse countries in the world, which should  make learning foreign languages a breeze, there’s a major problem for us: most foreign residents speak excellent English.   They have to!   After all, we are extremely demanding when it comes to English proficiency and it is virtually impossible to get a decent job in these countries without fluent English.  

This means that 99% of the Russian speakers you will come across in your city will speak much better English than you speak Russian.   It’s very difficult to get someone to suffer your broken Russian when they know they could accelerate the conversation by switching to English.   Frustrating, but true!

One way you can get around this is by making a semi-formal agreement with your interlocutor that you will speak English for half of the time, and Russian for the other half – that way you both get something out of it.  

You can find people searching for this kind of arrangement on websites like My Language Exchange .

The success of the language exchange will vastly depend on how well your personality and linguistic requirements mesh with your partner’s.   It’s really a case of trial and error .   But if you find the right person you can rack up hours and hours of conversation practice without having to pay anything.

If, though, you live in small town and you can’t find any suitable prospective language partners, we recommend that you skip ahead and take a look at our speaking suggestions for advanced learners.

Intermediate - Listening

Respectable online language courses like RussianPod101 , should still challenge you as you move up to intermediate level Russian.   But now you should begin to spread your wings and start listening to real Russian conversations (i.e. not the watered-down Russian that teachers use).

Mosfilm Catalogue

Film studio behind classic Soviet films like The Irony of Fate , Moscow Does Not Believe In Tears , and Gentlemen of Fortune . Vast catalogue available to watch for free on Youtube and official website. Russian and English subtitles.

A few years ago Mosfilm – one of the oldest and most famous Russian film production companies – released a free catalogue of a huge number of their greatest films on YouTube and their official website .  

These are fantastic ways for improving your listening comprehension, not only because the vast majority of them come with both English and Russian subtitles , but also because these classic Soviet films have made a huge impact on Russian culture.   You’ll find that Russians are always making reference to quotes and characters from these films, so you need to understand what they’re talking about.  

As such, you’ll never be able to claim that you are truly fluent until you can appreciate these cultural nuances, as well as master the linguistic side of the language!

Important Info

Mosfilm catalogue - our rating.

The usefulness of slow news is a controversial topic.   Some people claim that it’s a good way of preparing yourself to listen to real Russian news programmes (in which the presenters speak at an ungodly  pace).   Others say that it’s better just to jump in at the deep end and get used to how people really speak.

We reckon that the latter position is probably closer to the truth.   But if you think listening to slowed-down news would help you at this point then we recommend working through the audio clips found on this website .  

Try to listen to the clip a few times without looking at the accompanying transcription to see if you can understand the general gist.   Once you can understand the main points of the news briefing, it’s time to move on to the real thing.

Intermediate - Bonus

Russian Swear Words

Teaches you the swear words that Russians really use. Takes pains to lay out the grammar and context behind each word so you can use it correctly. Lots of examples given.

Teaches you the swear words that Russians really use. Takes pains to lay out the grammar and context behind each word so you can use it correctly. Lots of examples given. .

Instead, the best thing is to learn those evergreen swear words that people actually use in real life and don’t make you sound stupid.  

The book tells you which words to use and exactly how Russians use (with the correct grammar).  

Even if you have no interest in using the words, it’s still a useful book to read through as you can be sure that you need to understand when people are swearing and what they are saying!

Russian Swear Words - Our Rating

  Beginners | Intermediate | Advanced  

Advanced - Grammar & Vocabulary

Having studied Russian seriously for a few years, you will have picked up a wide range of words and phrases.   Your vocabulary will probably be close to ~10,000 words .   This should allow you to say pretty much whatever you want to say without having to break rhythm and rack your brains for a translation.

However, just because you know lots of words does not mean that you know how to use them correctly and naturally .

Using Russian Synonyms

Designed to expand and deepen the vocabulary of intermediate-advanced students. A guide to finding the right word for the context by illustrating the (often) subtle difference between synonyms. Huge number of words and lexical groups covered, arranged in an orderly fashion with an index.

What do we mean by this?

Well, for example, we all know that when we go to a funeral and we are giving our condolences to the bereaved, that it is polite to talk about the person ‘passing away’, rather than straight ‘dying’ or ‘being killed’.   Although the latter two translations are technically correct, given the situation it would perhaps seem slightly awkward to use them in this context.

The same principle applies to all languages, and Russian isn’t an exception.   If you want to stop being ‘that foreigner that can speak Russian well, but awkwardly and disjointedly’, this book will be invaluable to achieving, not just fluency, but naturalness as well.

All the synonyms are collected as groups.   So ‘to die’, ‘to perish’, ‘to pass away’, etc. are all one group, with ‘to die’ – the most common and neutral synonym – being presented as the group leader. The group leaders are all arranged alphabetically, meaning that finding the group you need is exceedingly simple.

Within each group the author provides the necessary grammatical information to use the words correctly, but also explains in what context the word should be used, states the register of the word (i.e. is it slang, neutral, formal, etc.), and provides plenty of usage examples.

While this book isn’t the end of the road when it comes to vocabulary, if you can work your way through it and absorb as many of the lexical nuances that are presented to you, you will be knocking on the door to genuine native-level fluency.

An absolute essential for advanced Russian learners.

Advanced - Reading

At this level, you should be able to read virtually anything!   The entire world of Russian literature is now open for you to explore, and no writing in the contemporary media will be prohibitively challenging.

The main thing to do is to read widely – try to absorb as much vocabulary from as many genres, topics, and registers as you you’re able to bear.

Below we have listed some online newspapers and magazines that are worth bookmarking:

  Vedomosti

  Kommersant

  Forbes (Ru)

  Novaya Gazeta

  Radio Svoboda

  Nezavisimaya Gazeta

  Argumenty i Fakty

  Sovetsky Sport

  Autoreview

  Tekhnika Molodezhi

  Literaturnaya Gazeta

  Vokrug Sveta

Advanced - Writing

While reading proficiency will have taken off for most advanced speakers, many will find that their writing skills are seriously lagging behind.

Time to take action!

Using Russian

Focuses on areas of written Russian that English speakers in particular find challenging. Learn how contemporary Russian is actually used in the real world. An excellent choice for students that would like to use Russian for business purposes and want to improve the professionalism of their Russian.

Using Russian is a guide to advanced Russian usage, focusing on areas of grammar, vocabulary, style, and register that are particularly difficult for English speakers.

It assumes that you have a solid grammatical and lexical foundation, so is able to skip past standard grammatical topics and instead focus on a huge range of miscellaneous problems : neologisms, fillers, idioms, measurement, currency, faux amis, translation issues, jokes, puns, verbal etiquette, etc.

We really can’t rate this book highly enough: even if you learnt Wade’s Grammar off by heart, you would still come across thousands of annoying difficulties in trying to write perfect Russian.   While we obviously can’t claim that this book contains the answer to every single one of those problems, just one look at its contents pages should convince you that it’s a vital tool for advanced learners who want to take their Russian to the next level.

Using Russian - Our Rating

Perhaps you’ve already signed up to Vkontakte – if you haven’t you should now!

Vkontakte is the largest social media network in the Russian-speaking world .   You make a profile just as you would on Facebook (in fact, much of the interface is virtually identical), and you’re good to go.

Apart from staying in contact with people you’ve met on your travels, it’s clearly a fantastic resource for keeping up-to-date with modern Russian culture, news, and topics of conversation.

Why is it in our writing section? Well, obviously, once you’ve connected with some Russian friends you can use it to practise your Russian writing with them all of the time!

But let’s assume for a second that your friends have lives and don’t want to spending every waking minute of the day correcting your past perfective participles – who can you go to for writing practice?

It really is that simple!

Of course, like all of these mutual-assistance websites, the more you help others, the more you’ll receive corrections for the material you input.   Even if you’re not a particularly altruistic person, the benefits of having your writing corrected by a native more than outweigh the time costs of returning the favour.

The Russian section of the WordReference forum is a great alternative if you can’t be bothered with Lang-8’s reciprocal set-up.

You can ask virtually any question related to Russian and expect to get a detailed knowledgeable answer back within a few hours.   As with any forum, make sure you read up on the site’s rules and etiquette before posting.

Advanced - Speaking

If you’re not living in Russia, keeping your speaking up for an advanced learner can be surprisingly difficult.   Language classes in institutes aren’t really worth their high costs at this point because you just need to talk, not have grammar explained to you.

If you haven’t got a burgeoning Russian-orientated social life, then you need to create one artificially!

Online language learning website which connects language learners and teachers through video chat. Over 5,000 teachers to choose from, ranging from qualified professionals to community tutors. Prices per hour can be as low as $5 for Russian. Best way to keep up your speaking skills from home.

Italki is essentially an online marketplace that links up language students and tutors for affordable Skype lessons.

Teachers are divided into two categories: professional teachers and community tutors .

Professional teachers are in possession of teaching qualifications and tend to follow a structured lesson plan.   They may charge quite a bit, depending on the language being taught.   Community tutors on the other hand are just enthusiastic native speakers that can provide informal conversational lessons.   Their prices vary, but for some languages (including Russian!) you can get hour-long lessons for as low as $5 !

If you are an advanced Russian speaker, we recommend that you arrange lessons solely with community tutors – all you need at this point is conversation practice, and a lot of it!

Of course, you need to find a tutor that you like with and whose teaching style suits you well.   Luckily, there is the ‘trial lesson’ feature that allows you to try out tutors in half-hour lessons at heavily discounted rates .   So you can sample a number of tutors that you think look promising and then arrange further lessons with the ones that you get on best with.

On top of all this, Italki also features a messaging tool, language specific blogs, Q&A forums, and feedback notebooks for any writing tasks that tutors set you.

Italki really is a fantastic tool that all language learners should know about.   There is now no excuse not to take your speaking proficiency to the next level!

Italki - Our Rating

Advanced - listening.

Listening will remain a major hurdle for advanced learners, long after they have mastered other skills.   No matter how proficient you become in Russian you will always have to pay attention when a native starts talking to make sure you catch every word.

To feel truly confident with your listening you will need to watch many hours of Russian television and films.

Russian TV streaming service that allows you to watch popular Russian programmes in your home country. Hundreds of channels and thousands of films available mean that you will always have fresh listening material. Reasonably priced and no contracts.

If you are no longer living in Russia, we recommend that you purchase a subscription with Kartina .

Kartina is a streaming service (you will need to buy a Dune media streamer first) that distributes Russian television channels , targeting the Russian diaspora in most Western countries.

You link it up to your television and for a small monthly fee (around $10, no contract) you get access to a 150+ channels and 2000+ on-demand films from across the former Soviet Union.   All the programming is archived for two weeks, so you have complete control over when you watch your programmes.Once you have a Kartina account, as well as watching it through Dune on your television, you can also login via a laptop or with the official app (iPhone and Android) on your phone at no extra cost.

It’s a reliable, fast service that we have had no problems with over the years, and an excellent way to get some Russian listening practice in if you have a spare 15-30 minutes.

Kartina TV - Our Rating

The only criticism we have of Kartina is that none of the channels come with Russian subtitles.   This would be useful for learners who are not quite good enough yet to understand everything spoken on Russian television.   But considering that Kartina is primarily aimed at Russian expatriates, and not foreign language learners, it’s not surprising that this feature has been omitted.

Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be anything to fill this gap in the market – you will just have to struggle on with unsubtitled Russian television until you get used to the speed and complexity of the speech.

Otherwise, Youtube and Rutube are your friends.   You can actually find most of the programmes that you get through Kartina on these sites.   So if you’re on a budget, these can be a good alternative to the subscription service.

Advanced - Bonus

The Russian Word's Worth

Cultural study and colloquial dictionary rolled into one book. The collected articles of a long-time Moscow expat, covering a smorgasbord of interesting and quirky topics. Great fun and a good insight into how Russians really speak.

Cultural study and colloquial dictionary rolled into one book. The collected articles of a long-time Moscow expat, covering a smorgasbord of interesting and quirky topics. Great fun and a good insight into how Russians really speak. .

Translator and Moscow Times columnist, Michele Berdy has been living in Moscow for decades – since before the collapse of the Soviet Union, in fact.   In that time, she has built up an enormous wealth of knowledge about Russia, its culture, and its language.

The Russian Word’s Worth is a collection of her humorous articles on a variety of topics – politics, the workplace, holidays, etymology – all of them focused on translation and the struggle that expats have in expressing themselves correctly.  

You will pick up a lot of practical Russian vocabulary: how to: express your condolences, how to deal with plumbers, how to excuse yourself to go to the bathroom, among other things.

The articles are refreshingly apolitical – a rarity when it comes to Russia!   And the fact that the author doesn’t take herself too seriously makes them a pleasure to read.

All-in-all, It’s an excellent book for advanced learners who want to expand their colloquial grasp of the language and gain a deeper appreciation for Russian culture.

The Russian Word's Worth - Our Rating

Russian - English Dictionary of Idioms

Colossal collection of Russian idioms, old and new. Over 14,000 entries with explanations and examples. The only resource that any Russian learner would ever need to enrich their vocabulary with colourful idioms. A must-have for (in particular, literary) translators.

You can actually find hundreds of Russian idioms on Wiktionary (with their literal translations and English equivalents).  

But if you that’s not enough and you feel you want to delve deeper, then this dictionary is perfect for you.

With close to 14,000 fully-translated items from the nineteenth century to the present day, it can rightfully claim to be the ‘most innovative, comprehensive, and scholarly bilingual dictionary of Russian idioms available today’.

Like all good language books, it packed full of examples, grammatical explanations, and stylistic and usage information.

Russian - English Dictionary of Idioms - Our Rating

Introduction to Russian - English Translation

Very practical, hands-on guide for Russian-English translators. The main aim of the book is to identify problematic aspects of Russian and English that might cause translations to sound clunky or awkward. Provides numerous examples for each point made and supplementary exercises to test your knowledge.

Perhaps you want to do more than speak excellent Russian.   Perhaps you have ambitions of working as a professional Russian translator.

If that’s the case, it’s important that you realise that being a good linguist and being a good translator are two COMPLETELY different things.   They require different skills, and different competencies.   In fact, many people claim that to succeed as a translator depends more on how well you write in your native tongue than how well you speak the foreign language you’re translating from.

That’s why books like Introduction to Russian-English Translation are so important: they teach you the vital translation skills that you won’t get from general Russian textbooks.  

The book is focused solely on the specific language pair of Russian-English, covering topics such as:

• Key words vs props
• Identifiers
• Intensifiers
• Diminutives and augmentatives
• Loaded words and implication
• Delays and interruptions
• Rhetorical and pragmatic factors

If you don’t know what a lot of these terms mean, then … all the more reason you should buy this book!

Introduction to Russian - English Translation - Our Rating

  Beginners | Intermediate | Advanced

Language Level Guide

• A1-A2 on the CEFR scale
• Has been learning for 0-1 years
• Is able to understand and contribute to basic conversations 
• B1-B2 on the CEFR scale
• Has been learning for 1-3 years
• Can satisfy majority of communicative needs in a wide range of situations
• C1-C2 on the CEFR scale
• Has been learning for 3+ years
• Has a high level of command in all communicative contexts

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