The basic rule to make a "soft
-indicating" Russian vowel is to combine a sound of English
y with corresponding "hard
-indicating" vowel. For example, to get Russian
я you should say
y + a as if they are one whole (
ya). Here I will introduce you into five "soft" vowels of the Russian language
я, е, ё, и, ю. You will also learn a rule of the Russian pronunciation called
ikanie.
Я as in yahoo
This vowel is pronounced like English
ya in
yahoo. Practice these words:
яма | ряд | яхта | мясо |
|
ya-ma | ryat | yakh-ta | mya-sa |
|
hole | row | yacht | meat |
|
E as in yes
The Russian sound of
e is easy, because it is close to
ye in English
yes. Do not confuse it with English letter
e, which sounds like Russian
э. Practice these words:
место | лето | песня | весело |
|
myes-ta | lye-ta | pyes-nya | vye-see-la |
|
place | summer | song | marrily |
|
In the word
весело, an unstressed
e sounds like an abbreviated Russian
и. This rules is called
ikanie and it also applies to unstressed
я and
э.
Rule #2 In unstressed positions, Russian letters Я, Е, Э are pronounced like an abbreviated Russian И. |
Ё as in yolk
This letter is pronounced like
yo in
yolk. As you can see,
ё is formed from
y sound and vowel
o:
y + o = ё. Now practice these words:
ёж | ёлка | плёнка |
|
|
yozh | yol-ka | plyon-ka |
|
|
hedgehog | fir-tree | film, tape |
|
|
Rule #3 The letter Ё is always stressed in Russian words. |
И as in meet
This letter is pronounced like
ee in
meet. Practice these exercises:
игла | Индия | пикник | лист |
|
eeg-lah | een-dee-ya | peek-neek | leest |
|
needle | India | picnic | leaf |
|
Ю as in you
The letter
ю denotes the same sound as the English word
you. Practice these words:
юг | Юпитер | плюс |
|
|
yook | yoo-pee-tyer | plyoos |
|
|
south | Jupiter | plus sign |
|
|
Quick reference on "soft-indicating" vowels
Russian letter | Symbol | Pronunciation |
Я (stressed) | ya | as ya in yahoo |
Я (unstressed) | ee | as ee in meet, but very short |
Е (stressed) | ye | as ye in yes |
Е (unstressed) | ee | as ee in meet, but very short |
Ё (always stressed) | yo | as yo in yolk |
Ю | yoo | as the word you |
И (stressed) | ee | as ee in meet |
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