Survival Essentials
The phrases that get you out of trouble: not understanding, needing something repeated, needing English, needing a bathroom. Learn this page before anything else — you will use every line in it within your first week in a Russian-speaking environment.
Yes, no, and basic manners
| Russian | Literal | Means | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Да | "Yes" | "Yes" | — |
| Нет | "No" | "No" | — |
| Пожа́луйста | "Please" / "You're welcome" | "Please" / "You're welcome" | Same word does both jobs — context tells you which. |
| Спаси́бо | "[God] save [you]" | "Thanks" | Historically «спаси́ Бог» — you don't need to think about that, just use it. |
| Большо́е спаси́бо | "Big thanks" | "Thank you very much" | Большо́е agrees with спаси́бо (neuter) — see gender. |
| Извини́те | "Excuse [me]" | "Excuse me" / "Sorry" | Formal/plural. Informal: Извини́. |
| Прости́те | "Forgive [me]" | "Excuse me" / "I'm sorry" | Slightly stronger apology than извини́те; also formal. |
| Не за что | "Not for what" | "Don't mention it" | Standard reply to спаси́бо. |
Pattern
Пожа́луйста is doing double duty in Russian the way "please" and "you're welcome" don't overlap in English. Don't overthink which meaning applies — native speakers pick it up from context instantly and so will you.
When you don't understand
| Russian | Literal | Means | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Я не понима́ю | "I not understand" | "I don't understand" | Present tense, no "am/is/are" needed — Russian has no present tense of "to be." |
| Я не говорю́ по-ру́сски | "I not speak in-Russian-way" | "I don't speak Russian" | «по-ру́сски» is an adverb, not a noun+case — it doesn't decline. |
| Говори́те ме́дленнее, пожа́луйста | "Speak slower, please" | "Please speak more slowly" | Formal imperative; ме́дленнее is the comparative of ме́дленно ("slowly"). |
| Повтори́те, пожа́луйста | "Repeat, please" | "Could you repeat that?" | Formal imperative of повтори́ть (perfective — a one-time completed repeat). |
| Что э́то зна́чит? | "What this means?" | "What does that mean?" | зна́чит is 3rd person singular of зна́чить ("to mean"). |
| Как э́то сказа́ть по-ру́сски? | "How this to-say in-Russian-way?" | "How do you say this in Russian?" | сказа́ть is the infinitive; no subject needed in this construction. |
| Как по-ру́сски "X"? | "How in-Russian-way 'X'?" | "How do you say X in Russian?" | Shorter, more common version — drops the verb entirely. |
| Вы говори́те по-англи́йски? | "You speak in-English-way?" | "Do you speak English?" | Formal/plural вы; question marked only by intonation and "?", word order doesn't change. |
| Я не зна́ю | "I not know" | "I don't know" | зна́ю from знать — irregular-looking but regular 1st-conjugation verb; see present tense. |
Pattern
«Как по-ру́сски "X"?» is the single most useful phrase you'll learn this month — it lets you ask about any word, on the spot, without knowing anything else. Point at an object or say the English word in place of X.
Pattern
Any formal imperative ends in -ите/-ьте: Говори́те, Повтори́те, Скажи́те. Recognizing this ending tells you "someone is being asked to do something, politely" even before you know the specific verb.
Getting help
| Russian | Literal | Means | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Помоги́те, пожа́луйста | "Help, please" | "Help me, please" | Formal imperative of помо́чь; the person helped goes in the dative if stated (Помоги́те мне). |
| Скажи́те, пожа́луйста... | "Tell, please..." | "Excuse me, could you tell me..." | Standard polite opener before asking any question of a stranger. |
| Где туале́т? | "Where [is-the] toilet?" | "Where's the bathroom?" | No verb "to be" needed in the present. |
| Мне ну́жен туале́т | "To-me [is] necessary toilet" | "I need a bathroom" | Impersonal construction with dative мне — see dative; ну́жен agrees with the masculine noun туале́т. |
| Э́то опа́сно? | "This dangerous?" | "Is this dangerous?" | опа́сно is a short-form neuter adjective used adverbially/predicatively. |
| Мо́жно? | "[Is it] possible?" | "May I?" / "Is it OK?" | One-word question, endlessly reusable — Мо́жно войти́? ("May I come in?"), Мо́жно сюда́? ("Can I [put/go] here?"). |
| Нельзя́ | "[It is] not-possible" | "You can't" / "Not allowed" | The negative answer to мо́жно; also seen on signs. |
Pattern
«Мне ну́жен / нужна́ / ну́жно / нужны́ X» = "I need X." The ending on ну́жен changes to agree with the gender/number of X, not with "I" — a classic dative-impersonal trap. Ну́жен туале́т (masc.), нужна́ вода́ (fem.), ну́жно вре́мя (neut.), нужны́ де́ньги (plural).
Naming things and asking what they're called
| Russian | Literal | Means | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Как э́то называ́ется? | "How this is-called?" | "What is this called?" | называ́ется is reflexive (-ся) — literally "calls itself." |
| Что э́то? | "What this?" | "What is this?" | No verb needed. |
| Кто э́то? | "Who this?" | "Who is this?" | Same pattern with кто instead of что. |
| Я забы́л(а) | "I forgot" | "I forgot" | -л for a man speaking, -ла for a woman — past tense agrees with subject gender; see past tense. |
| Мину́точку | "[A] little-minute" | "One moment" / "Just a sec" | Diminutive of мину́та; accusative of duration, used as a stand-alone phrase. |
| Одну́ секу́нду | "One second" | "One second" | одну́ is the feminine accusative of оди́н, agreeing with feminine секу́нда. |
Pattern
«Как X называ́ется?» works for anything you can point at — swap nothing, just point and ask. It's the physical-object twin of «Как по-ру́сски "X"?», which is for words you already know in English.