Russian expressions
Difference between я хочу and мне хочется
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that we have 2 different Russian expressions that mean "I want", я хочу and мне хочется? Я хочу is used to express a strong desire for something concrete...
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that we have many expressions with the word ну in the Russian language? They generally express different emotions. For example, Ну и ну! Ты опять опоздал! It is unbelievable!...
How to say “I agree” in Russian
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that we have several expressions of agreeing in Russian? Согласиться means “to agree”, so the basic expression of agreement is Я согласен/Я согласна (I agree). But we...
How to say "I disagree" in Russian
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that in Russian there are several expressions of disagreeing? You probably already know that согласиться means ‘to agree’, so не согласиться is ‘to not agree/disagree’. The basic...
Five Russian expressions with animals
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that животное means ‘animal’ in Russian? There are a lot of Russian idioms that mention animals. For example, Не делай из мухи слона! (Don’t make an elephant out of...
Difference between такой же and одинаковый
Russian Tip of the Day
Do you know what is the difference between такой же and одинаковый? There are synonyms and both mean "the same", but require different structures: одинаковый is mostly used with plural nouns,...
Five Russian idioms with the word руки
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that in Russian there are many idioms with body parts (части тела)? The word руки means hands or arms. Here are five common expressions with the word...
How to say “I don’t know” in Russian
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that in Russian there are several ways to say that you don’t know something? Most likely, you already know the most popular phrase Я не знаю (literally...
Imperfective and perfective verbs with the word нельзя
Russian Tip of the Day
Do you know that phrases with the word нельзя have different meanings depending on the verbal aspect? Using imperfective with нельзя means that the action is prohibited or undesirable: Здесь...
Russian sentences with такой... какой
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that in Russian we have a special frase that convey a meaning of "such as", "such which" or "such that" - такой... какой? For example, В этом ресторане такие...
Russian sentences with столько, сколько
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that in Russian we have a special frase that convey a meaning of "as much/many as" - столько, сколько? For example, Я купила столько шоколада, сколько не смогу съесть...
Russian sentences with настолько, насколько
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that in Russian we have a special frase that convey a meaning of "as much as" and can describe opposition - насколько, настолько? For example, Насколько я была грустна...
Russian words that describe comparison
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that there are a lot of Russian words that describe comparison? For example, these are наподобие, вроде, типа, подобно, словно. All of them mean "like". Я хочу купить...
Russian expressions with ничего
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that Russians use a lot of expressions with ничего ('nothing')? For example, Ничего страшного! It is ok! Ему всё ничего! For him, everything is easy! Ничего, ещё всё наладится! Don't worry,...
How to express unreliable comparison in Russian
Russian Tip of the Day
Did you know that there are different ways to express unreliable comparison in Russian? If you want to express contrast of real - irreal in the same sentence, you can...
The real meaning of the expression ''На здоровье!''
Russian Tip of the Day
It’s quite common to think that ‘‘На здоровье!’’ is a way of saying cheers in Russian. It is exactly what you may hear in Hollywood movies depicting Russians drinking. However,...
Difference between ‘наконец’ and ‘в конце концов’
Russian Tip of the Day
It’s a common mistake, even at high levels of language proficiency, to believe that ‘наконец’ and ‘в конце концов’ are synonymous and interchangeable. Let’s figure it out. We use ‘наконец’ or...
Useful colloquial expression ‘когда как’
Russian Tip of the Day
‘Когда как’ is one of the expressions which make you sound very natural in Russian. Its meaning may not be that obvious though. The best translation for the expression ‘когда как’...
Figurative meanings of the verbs ‘садиться’ and ‘сесть’
Russian Tip of the Day
The verbs ‘садиться’ and ‘сесть’ do not always mean ‘sit down’, they also have idiomatic meanings. Read the following examples and try to guess from the context what ‘садиться’ and...
The Russian response to a sneeze
Russian Tip of the Day
According to Russian etiquette norms, when a person sneezes, you are supposed to wish him or her health using an imperative mode. There are three forms for that: будь здоров...
