Russian Pronunciation Guide Pt.2

Hello Junkies,

Welcome to Part 2 of the Russian pronunciation guide. (Part 1 here)

Today, you’re going to learn the top 5 pronunciation mistakes most Russian learners make. This isn’t to make you feel stupid. This is to make you more aware, smarter, help you skip common mistakes and master Russian faster!

(And if you want to REALLY learn Russian with Audio & Video lessons from real teachers, be sure to check out RussianPod101.com and click here)

So, what are some common mistakes? Let’s go!

1. Mispronouncing the Yeru – Ы

Don’t worry young learner, this is completely understandable. The Ы is not used in English. It’s okay to make this mistake. But you should be aware.

Mistake: Ы is often pronounced as И (the “ee” sound).

This can be a problem with Russian words. You may end up saying the same word! For example, see below. Both are similar but the meanings are different.

бить (beet’) – the verb “to beat”
- Press play to hear the pronunciation:
быть (bыt’) – the verb “to be”
- Press play to hear the pronunciation:

Solution: You must hear the difference between the two. Then try the exercises below.

Ы – Press play below

И – Press Play Below

Now, that you can hear the difference, how can you replicate it? The Ы comes directly from the throat. Try these exercises:

Say “irk” without saying the “rk”
Say “ill” without saying the “ll” part.
Say “ew” without the “w”.
- The sound in all cases will come from your throat.

2. Can’t pronounce the Soft Sign – Ь

Again, not your fault! This is unique to Russian so it’s perfectly OKAY to get this wrong.

The soft sign has no sound of its own. It’s only used after consonants. And it “softens” the sound of the consonant. How?

The Ь adds a slight “ee” sound to the consonant. For example…
- The T in “Beat” is solid T sound.
- The T in “Team” has a bit of an “ee” sound before you say “M.”
- Here’s an explanation to help you better understand:

Listen to some examples below and refer to the picture. Press play and you’ll hear these words in order as they’re shown below. The words with Ь contain the softer version of the consonant.

Solution: Add a slight “ee” sound at the end of the consonant to pronounce it right.

3. Mispronouncing the Щ consonant.

The Щ is somewhat somewhat similar to Ш or “sh” but there’s a difference!

The Ш (sh) is very similar to the English SH sound like in show, cash, shark and sham.

But, Щ is a much sharper sound. The closest thing to it would be “shit” (ooh, bad word!) should you ever be angry enough to stress and sharp the “sh” sound. Hear how it sounds like with the examples below. Look at the picture and listen along.

Solution: Listen to a lot of Russian Audio lessons where you can also read and distinctly pinpoint the Щ sound. The more you encounter it, the better off your pronunciation will be.

4. Using Incorrect Intonations – Especially for asking questions.

It’s possible to ask questions in Russian without using question words. For example, in Russian, “This is a museum” and “This is a museum?” can be either statements or questions depending on your tone.

Kind of like English!

However, you must be mindful of the intonation that you’re using. Take a listen to the example below. The first one is a statement and the second is a question.

Solution: Don’t worry too much. Keep your ear open but you’ll become sensitive to intonation over time. This is just to keep you on your toes.

5. Mispronouncing Letters that Look Alike – И and Й

И and Й look very similar right? Well, if you read part 1 of the pronunciation guide, you know that И is a vowel that sounds like (ee) and Й is a consonant that sounds like “y” in “boy” or “i” in “chai.”

However, that little sign above the letter can easily be ignored.

So, here’s an example. Listen below to the following words. The words with Й will have an “oy” sound and the words with И have an “ee” sound.

Solution: Pay attention to the letters. You’ll get it with enough practice.

And that’s it. This guide was made with the help of RussianPod101 .com Pronunciation Lessons so be sure to sign up and check them out if you want to seriously learn Russian.

So, what do you think?

What are your trouble-spots with Russian? Leave a comment below!

Stay tuned for more Russian pronunciation guides, tutorials and more!

– The Main Junkie

P.S. Highly recommended for learners. If you REALLY want to learn Russian with effective lessons by real teachers – Sign up for free at RussianPod101 (click here) and start learning!