Cyrillic and the English alphabet share some shapes, and a few of those shapes stand for different sounds. The Russian word НЕТ means no, but it looks like the English letters HET.
Which Russian Letters Look Like English but Sound Different?
The Russian Cyrillic course teaches these in two chapters, called “Familiar Shapes, New Sounds” and “Three More To Watch”, and Ь comes later with the signs.
| Russian Letter | Looks Like | Sound | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| В в | B | v | вата | cotton wool |
| Н н | H | n | он | he |
| Р р | P | r | рот | mouth |
| С с | C | s | сон | dream |
| У у | Y | u | утро | morning |
| Х х | X | The ch in Scottish loch | ухо | ear |
| Е е | E | ye | нет | no |
| Ь ь | b | no sound of its own | мать | mother |
Ь is called the soft sign. It makes the letter in front of it soft, so the т at the end of мать ends with a little y sound.
Which Ones Are Safe?
А, К, М, О and Т look like A, K, M, O and T, and they sound like them too. The course teaches them first, in words like мама (mum) and кот (cat), so a beginner can read a few words right away.
Which Lowercase Letters Fool You?
Some lowercase letters look like English lowercase letters, and others look like small capitals. In many fonts, the shapes match exactly.
- рRussian rU+0440pEnglish pU+0070The Russian р has a tail like p, but it says r, as in рот (mouth).
- уRussian uU+0443yEnglish yU+0079The Russian у says u, as in утро (morning).
- вRussian vU+0432нRussian nU+043DThese two look like a small capital B and a small capital H. They say v and n.
- гRussian gU+0433rEnglish rU+0072The lowercase г can look like an r in some fonts, but it's the Russian g, as in город (city).
The code points under each letter show that they're different characters, even when they look the same.
Do the Other Cyrillic Alphabets Work the Same Way?
Most of these letters work the same way, but a few change from one language to the next. In Ukrainian, Г is a breathy h sound, and І sounds like the ee in see. Serbian has Ј, which looks like J but sounds like the y in yes. Each language has its own chart: Ukrainian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Macedonian and Belarusian.
How Can You Learn Them?
In the Russian alphabet chart, every letter that sounds different from its English twin has a picture: В is a vine, and Р is a ribbon. The Russian Cyrillic course starts with the safe letters and then teaches the ones that sound different.
Free Russian Cyrillic Course
- Audio for Every Letter
- Spaced Repetition Review
- Real Example Words
0 of 9 Chapters Complete
Poppy, your AI tutor in the Bubblegum app, then writes Russian lessons you can read with the letters you know.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can You Type Russian on an iPhone?
Yes. In Settings, tap General, Keyboard, Keyboards and Add New Keyboard, then choose Russian. The Russian keyboard types the Cyrillic letters, so you won't mix in an English P by mistake.
Which Russian App Should a Beginner Choose?
If you are serious about learning Russian, start with Bubblegum. Poppy writes lessons at your level about things you like. Its Russian Cyrillic course covers all 33 letters in nine short chapters, ending with Ы and Ф. Our Russian app comparison covers more choices and what each one is good for.
Is Bubblegum Free?
Yes. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn. It holds lessons that other learners asked Poppy for. A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- Apple, iOS and iPadOS feature availability (keyboards include Russian)
- Apple Support, Add or change keyboards on iPhone
- Unicode Technical Standard #39, confusables.txt (Cyrillic А В Е К М Н О Р С Т У Х map to Latin A B E K M H O P C T Y X; lowercase р с у х to p c y x; Serbian Ј to J)
- Wikipedia, Soft sign (Ь marks the consonant before it as soft)
