Russian · Cyrillic
Russian alphabet.
All 33 letters of the Russian alphabet, in order. Tap a letter to hear it and see how to say it, with a word from Misu’s Russian course. Then test yourself.
- 33 letters
- Tap to hear
- A quick quiz
The 33 letters
Consonants are heard here with а after them: Б in ба. Й, Л, Щ, Ъ, Ы and Ь are heard in words.
Stress and the two signs
say the marked syllable louder and longer
вода́
vodá · water
An о just before the stress sounds like a. Ordinary print leaves the mark out; this course marks every word that needs one.
no sound: it softens the letter before it
пить
pit' · to drink
Soft means the middle of your tongue rises toward the roof of your mouth, as if a faint y followed.
no sound: it keeps a clear y after it
объясня́ть
obyasnyát' · to explain
Ъ is Ь with a little flag on top. Neither has a sound of its own: Ь softens, Ъ keeps the y clear.
Letters that fool English eyes
Tap one to hear it and see how to say it.
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The b sound has its own letter, Б, coming up soon. В, with two bumps like B, says v.
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Watch out for И: it looks like a backwards N and says ee. The n sound is Н, with its bar straight across.
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Can't roll it yet? One quick tap works: the tt in American better is very close.
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Round your lips and push them forward, more than you would for English oo.
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Start to say k, but don't let your tongue touch the roof of your mouth: let the air rasp through.
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Щ is Ш with a little tail: the tail tells you to hold the sh longer and softer.
Quiz
Test yourself.
15 letters, one at a time. Pick the kind of question, then tap your answer, or press 1 to 4.
In the Misu app
Learn the Russian alphabet as flashcards.
Misu’s Cyrillic deck is 30 flashcards for all 33 letters: the five you already know, the six that look like English letters but aren’t, the new ones, and the stress mark. Each one has its sound, a tip, and a word from the course with its picture.
About two days at 15 new flashcards a day. Russian Foundations marks the stress on every word.
Get MisuQuick answers
How many letters are in the Russian alphabet?
33: 10 vowels, 21 consonants and two signs, Ъ and Ь, which have no sound of their own.
How long does it take to learn the Russian alphabet?
A few days to read it slowly. Misu’s Cyrillic deck is 30 flashcards, about two days at 15 new flashcards a day.
Is the Russian alphabet the same as Cyrillic?
Russian is written in Cyrillic, which other languages use too, like Ukrainian, Bulgarian and Serbian, each with a few letters of its own. This chart is Russian’s 33.
Which Russian letters look English but sound different?
Six: В is v, Н is n, Р is r, С is s, У is u and Х is a raspy h, like the ch in loch.
What do Ь and Ъ do?
Neither has a sound. Ь softens the letter before it, as in пить (to drink); Ъ keeps a clear y after it, as in объясня́ть (to explain).
Why do Russian words have accent marks?
They show the stress, which changes how vowels sound: an о just before the stress sounds like a. Ordinary print leaves them out; Misu’s Russian course marks every word.
Learn the Russian alphabet in Misu.
Misu’s Cyrillic deck: every letter with its sound, a tip and a word with its picture.
Get Misu