How to ask the time

Который час? and Сколько времени? both mean “What time is it?” Add a polite introduction when asking a stranger:
Извините, не подскажете, который сейчас час? — Excuse me, could you tell me what time it is?
Скажите, пожалуйста, сколько времени? — Could you please tell me the time?

Direct or digital-style time

Say the hours, then the minutes: 18:35 — восемнадцать часов тридцать пять минут. You can also omit the unit words: восемнадцать тридцать пять. The 24-hour system is common in schedules and can also be used in conversation; it is not restricted to military speech.

The unit words change with the number. Use час / минута after numbers ending in 1, except 11; часа / минуты after endings 2–4, except 12–14; and часов / минут after the others. With minutes, use feminine одна and две: 21:01 — двадцать один час одна минута; 02:22 — два часа двадцать две минуты; 11:14 — одиннадцать часов четырнадцать минут. It is incorrect to use часов and минут after every number.

In 12-hour speech, add утра (in the morning), дня (in the daytime / afternoon), вечера (in the evening), or ночи (at night) when needed: 18:35 — шесть тридцать пять вечера. These day-part labels follow common usage and context rather than a universal fixed boundary. For one o’clock, час is usual: час дня or час ночи.

Conversational time: think about the next hour

Quarter past and quarter to

For quarter past, use пятнадцать минут or четверть plus the next hour as an ordinal in the genitive: четверть девятого is 8:15, a quarter of the way into the ninth hour. For quarter to, use без пятнадцати or без четверти plus the upcoming hour as a cardinal number: без четверти два is 1:45.

Half past

Use половина plus the next hour as a genitive ordinal. Половина девятого means 8:30, not 9:30. The combined form полдевятого means the same thing. These forms are usually written together, but пол-одиннадцатого (10:30) has a hyphen before the vowel. See Gramota’s spelling guide for пол-.

Other minutes past the hour

For 1–29 minutes past, use the minute number, the appropriate form of минута, and the next hour as a genitive ordinal. Within this range: 1 and 21 take минута; 2–4 and 22–24 take минуты; 5–20 and 25–29 take минут.

Minutes to the next hour

For 31–59 minutes past, a common conversational pattern is без + minutes remaining in the genitive + upcoming hour. At 8:40, twenty minutes remain before nine: без двадцати девять. The unit минут is often omitted. With one minute remaining, say без одной минуты. Before one o’clock, use час.

For an approximate answer, use почти: почти десять — almost ten, for example at 9:57; почти час — almost one, for example at 12:58. These are approximations, not exact replacements. To emphasize exactness: ровно десять — exactly ten.

Using time expressions in sentences

To state the current time, no preposition is needed: Сейчас восемь утра. — It is eight in the morning.

For when an event happens, use в: Занятия начинаются в полдевятого утра и заканчиваются в два часа дня. — Classes begin at half past eight in the morning and end at two in the afternoon. В этой истории метро закрывается в полночь. — In this story, the metro closes at midnight. Actual schedules must be checked separately.

После + genitive: Она сможет присоединиться к нам после семи. — She can join us after seven.
К + dative: Сегодня потеплеет к полудню. — It will get warmer by noon today.
Около + genitive: Он придёт около шести. — He will come at about six.

Asking and stating the date

Какое сегодня число? means “What is the date today?” To answer, use a neuter singular ordinal for the day and the month in the genitive: Сегодня четвёртое июня. — Today is June 4. Четыре (four) becomes четвёртый (fourth), then neuter четвёртое. Июнь becomes июня. Month names are written in lower case.

Какое число было вчера? — Вчера было третье июня.
What was the date yesterday? — It was June 3.
Какое завтра число? — Завтра будет пятое июня.
What will the date be tomorrow? — Tomorrow will be June 5.
Other useful words are позавчера (the day before yesterday) and послезавтра (the day after tomorrow).

Years and full dates

Какой сейчас год? — What year is it? In a compound year numeral, normally only the final component becomes ordinal: две тысячи двадцатый год (2020), тысяча девятьсот восемьдесят пятый год (1985), две тысячи двадцать шестой год (2026). A round year such as 2000 has its own form: двухтысячный год. Think of numeral components, not individual digits.

When naming a full current date, the day remains neuter nominative, while the month and year expression use the genitive: Сегодня четвёртое июня две тысячи двадцатого года. — Today is June 4, 2020. This is a model sentence, not today’s actual date.

Saying when an event happens

Ask Когда…? (“When…?”) or Какого числа…? (“On what date…?”). For a specific day, use the genitive ordinal and genitive month, without в:
Какого числа приезжает твой брат? — Десятого марта.
On what date is your brother arriving? — On March 10.
Когда у твоей жены день рождения? — Двадцать третьего ноября.
When is your wife’s birthday? — On November 23.

For a compound day number, only the final ordinal component changes: двадцать третье → двадцать третьего, тридцать первое → тридцать первого. The first two columns below answer “What date?”; the last answers “On what date?”

Months, years, and complete dates

В каком году родился твой брат? — В две тысячи двенадцатом году.
In what year was your brother born? — In 2012. В takes the prepositional form of the final ordinal component and году.
Когда у тебя отпуск? — В августе.
When is your vacation? — In August. The month is prepositional after в.

Когда ты начал работать в этой компании? — В феврале две тысячи семнадцатого года.
When did you start working at this company? — In February 2017. The month is prepositional after в; the year expression is genitive.
Когда твои родители поженились? — Двадцать пятого октября две тысячи шестого года.
When did your parents get married? — On October 25, 2006. For an event on a full date, the day, month, and final ordinal component of the year are genitive.

Practise the patterns

Say 8:15, 8:30, and 8:45 using both direct and conversational forms. Then write today’s date and the date of your birthday. If you need to review the numbers themselves, use our Russian numbers guide. Which pattern is hardest to remember?

Letters and sounds are different things: one letter may represent different sounds in different positions. The table introduces common sound values, not a complete transcription of each example. Symbols in square brackets are from the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA); [j] means the “y” sound in English “yes,” not the “j” in “jam.” An acute accent marks word stress for learning.

The 33 Russian letters

Vowel letters and consonant softness

Teachers often group the vowel letters as а, о, у, ы, э and я, ё, ю, и, е. “Hard” and “soft” primarily describe the preceding consonant, not two fixed kinds of vowel sounds. The second group usually signals a soft consonant when that consonant has a soft counterpart. Compare лук (onion) and люк (hatch).

Е, ё, ю, and я can represent [j] plus a vowel at the beginning of a word, after another vowel, and after a separating ь or ъ: ель, ёж, юг, яблоко, каюта, пьеса, объект. After a paired consonant, they usually indicate softness instead of a separate [j]: век, берёза, брюки, пряник. И is different: it does not normally start a word with [ji].

This is not a rule that softens every consonant. In ordinary native vocabulary, ж, ш, ц are normally hard, while ч, щ, й are normally soft. И after ж and ш has an ы-like sound, as in жизнь. Some loanwords also retain a hard consonant before е.

Stress and unstressed vowels

Russian stress can fall on different syllables and may change between word forms. Unstressed vowels are often reduced. Unstressed о after a hard consonant is not pronounced as a full [o]: it commonly approaches [ɐ] or [ə], depending on position. Unstressed е after a soft consonant commonly approaches [ɪ]. These are tendencies, not an exact substitution of every о with а or every е with и.

Russian does not use vowel length to distinguish words in the same way as some languages do. Still, stressed and unstressed vowels differ in duration and quality. English comparisons are approximate; “on” is not an exact pronunciation model for Russian он across English accents.

Hard and soft consonants

Many Russian consonants form hard/soft pairs: [b]–[bʲ], [k]–[kʲ], [s]–[sʲ], for example. A soft consonant is pronounced with the middle of the tongue raised towards the hard palate. The IPA superscript ʲ marks this; it does not mean you always add a separate “y” sound after the consonant.

Compare угол (angle) and уголь (coal), or полка (shelf) and полька (polka, a dance). The soft sign can distinguish words. In бегать (to run), ь signals a soft final т.

Voicing and devoicing

Paired voiced consonants are normally devoiced at the end of a word: the final б in хлеб (bread) sounds like [p]; the final д in йод like [t]; the final г in юг like [k]. The letters stay the same in writing.

Nearby consonants can also affect voicing: юбка (skirt) has a [p]-like sound for б before к; рюкзак (backpack) has a [ɡ]-like sound for к before з; просьба (request) has a voiced soft з-like sound for с before б. Do not assume that every voiced consonant makes the preceding one voiced: sonorants and в do not behave like ordinary triggers in this rule.

Recognizing letter shapes

Some familiar shapes

Printed А, К, М, О, Т resemble Latin letters, with roughly familiar sound values. Е is also visually familiar, but its Russian sound and softening role need separate attention. З resembles the digit 3 more closely than a standard Latin Z. Handwritten forms can differ substantially from print.

Russian зе́лень contains soft з, л, and н in its usual pronunciation. Russian cursive lowercase т can resemble Latin m; practise printed and cursive forms separately.

Familiar shapes with different sounds

Russian р uses a tongue-tip trill or tap, rather than the usual English “r.” Х is a friction sound made at the back of the mouth, as in Scottish “loch”; it is not the ordinary English [h]. In солнце, the л is normally silent. The two alphabets’ similar shapes do not imply identical pronunciation.

Less familiar shapes

The combination дж occurs in words such as джаз (jazz). Avoid assuming that every Russian letter is an exact match for an English sound. Russian document is докуме́нт, with stress on the third syllable; лаборатория is лаборато́рия, with stress on the fourth.

Ы, ь, and ъ

Ы represents [ɨ], a central unrounded vowel without an exact standard English equivalent. It is not simply the vowel in English “ill.” Practise it in ты́ква (pumpkin) and мы́ло (soap), preferably with recorded native audio. Ы rarely begins ordinary Russian words, but can begin borrowed names; uppercase Ы is a valid letter.

Ь, the soft sign, has no sound of its own. It can indicate softness, act as a separator before a vowel, or mark a grammatical spelling. Compare угол / уголь and полка / полька. In пла́тье (dress) and пьеса, it signals separation as well as a soft preceding consonant. In мышь, the ш remains hard despite ь.

Ъ, the hard sign, also has no sound of its own. It is a separating sign, often between a prefix ending in a consonant and е, ё, ю, or я. Learn подъём (ascent / rise / lifting) and объя́тие (embrace). Подъём is not the usual word for a political uprising.

Practise reading and spelling

1. Put these words in alphabetical order

Сала́т, ко́фе, бу́ргер, футбо́л, парк, па́спорт, такси́, пиани́ст, ра́дио, чемпио́н, фильм, ви́део. Read each word aloud and compare its stress with the related English word.

2. Match place names

Аме́рика, Брази́лия, Украи́на, Фра́нция, Австра́лия, Герма́ния, Кана́да, Аргенти́на, Нью-Йо́рк, Берли́н, То́кио, Ло́ндон, Ки́ев, Мадри́д, Пари́ж, Чика́го. Find their English equivalents, then compare the stressed syllables.

3. Match words, pronunciations, and meanings

Match these words to their meanings before opening the answers: глаза́, ве́чер, доро́га, кварти́ра, любо́вь, ма́льчик, приве́т, спаси́бо, хорошо́, шко́ла. Meanings: road, eyes, boy, thank you, hi, good/well, apartment, evening, school, love. The answers include broad IPA pronunciation; ˈ marks stress and ʲ marks a soft consonant.

Practise a small group of letters each day. Spell familiar words, listen to a native recording, and compare the sounds with the printed form. This builds a more reliable foundation than reading every Russian word through English spelling.

An acute accent marks a stressed vowel for learning. Stress marks are normally omitted in everyday Russian writing. The tables use Cyrillic consistently; English spelling approximations cannot fully show Russian pronunciation.

Cardinal numbers from 0 to 10

Examples: один мужчина (one man), два мужчины (two men), три женщины (three women), Это один мужчина (this is one man). Gender affects один and два; most other basic cardinals do not have separate masculine, feminine, and neuter forms.

Collective numerals are a separate group

Двое, трое, and similar words count a group in particular contexts. They are collective numerals, not the ordinary plural forms of два or три. For example, двое мужчин (two men) is possible alongside два мужчины. Say три женщины, rather than трое женщин, in standard usage.

Common combinations include двое детей (two children), трое друзей (three male friends), and двое суток (two days, using a plural-only noun). Collectives have their own restrictions and declension; they cannot replace ordinary cardinals with every noun. Один also has a real plural form, одни, used in contexts such as одни ножницы (one pair of scissors).

Ordinal numbers from 0 to 10

Ordinals agree with the noun in gender, number, and case, like adjectives: первое место (first place), второй день (the second day), третий человек (the third person). Четырёхсотый means four-hundredth, the position 400th; it does not mean four hundredths, a fraction.

Numbers from 11 to 19

These forms share the ending -надцать, but learn their spelling and stress individually rather than simply attaching letters to every basic number. The table gives masculine nominative singular ordinals.

Numbers from 20 to 29

For 21–29, put the unit after двадцать. In compound ordinals, only the final word becomes ordinal: двадцать один → двадцать первый.

Examples: двадцать один (twenty-one), двадцать шесть (twenty-six), двадцать восемь (twenty-eight). With a feminine noun, use двадцать одна книга (21 books) or двадцать две книги (22 books).

Other tens

Build other compound numbers the same way: тридцать два (32), пятьдесят семь (57), девяносто девять (99). Ordinals include сорок пятый (45th), семьдесят первый (71st), and восемьдесят четвёртый (84th). The cardinal 40 is со́рок; соро́к is not an alternative stress for this numeral.

Hundreds, thousands, and larger numbers

For 3,479 apples: У меня есть три тысячи четыреста семьдесят девять яблок. In writing, you can also use У меня есть 3 479 яблок. Digits shorten the written form; you still need the correct spoken forms and noun ending.

Which noun form follows a number?

In simple nominative counting phrases, use the singular after 1, the genitive singular after 2–4, and the genitive plural after 5 and above: один стол, два стола, пять столов. For compound numbers, look at the last unit, except that 11–14 use the genitive plural: 21 стол, 22 стола, 25 столов, 111 столов. Other cases follow different patterns: с двумя столами (with two tables), о пяти столах (about five tables).

Declension of cardinal numbers

The following tables show reference forms in the six cases. Cardinal numerals have different patterns: 5–20 and 30 share one general pattern, 40/90/100 have two forms, and 50–80 and 200–900 change both parts. Do not apply one set of endings to every number.

0, 1, and 2

In the accusative, animate masculine один and animate plural одни use genitive-looking forms; inanimate forms match the nominative. With два/две, compare вижу два стола (I see two tables) and вижу двух мужчин (I see two men). Collective двое is a separate numeral and does not belong in the два declension column.

3–9

For 3 and 4, the accusative differs with animate and inanimate nouns: вижу три стола versus вижу трёх мужчин. The accusative of 5–9 matches the nominative numeral in ordinary counting phrases. Eight has two accepted instrumental forms: восемью́ and восьмью́.

10–50

The teens decline like пять: пятнадцать → пятнадцати → пятнадцатью, for example. For сорок, девяносто, сто, nominative and accusative use the basic form; genitive, dative, instrumental, and prepositional use сорока, девяноста, ста respectively.

60–90

Both parts change in 50–80: пятьдесят → пятидесяти → пятьюдесятью. For 80, the instrumental can be восьмьюдесятью or восемьюдесятью.

100–400

500–900

For example: больше пятисот рублей (more than 500 rubles), к пятистам рублям (to 500 rubles), с пятьюстами рублями (with 500 rubles), о пятистах рублях (about 500 rubles). The genitive is пятисот, not пятьсот or пятиста.

Тысяча and миллион

Тысяча is feminine; миллион is masculine. Миллиард, триллион, and the other -лион/-лиард number nouns follow masculine noun patterns. They normally govern a genitive plural noun: тысяча рублей, два миллиона рублей.

Compound numbers and ordinals

In a compound cardinal, each numeral component changes when the case changes: двести тридцать пять → с двумястами тридцатью пятью. In a compound ordinal, only the last word changes: двадцать первый день → о двадцать первом дне.

Start with numbers you actually use, such as prices and dates. Keep the larger declension tables as a reference, and practise full phrases so you learn the numeral and noun forms together.

Dative case and its prepositions

The dative answers кому? and чему? (to whom? to what?). It often marks a recipient, but has other uses too; it is not simply the case for everything English expresses with “for.”

Сыну and другу are dative forms, used without a preposition here. The following prepositions take the dative in these examples.

К with movement answers куда? (where to?), rather than где? (where?). Learn the expanded form in phrases such as ко мне (to me). По often takes the dative, but this is not its only case; compare по пояс in the accusative section below. Согласно takes the dative: согласно легенде, согласно договору.

Accusative case and its prepositions

The accusative answers кого? and что? (whom? what?) and commonly marks a direct object: Я люблю Мишу (I love Misha), Я люблю пиццу (I love pizza). With prepositions, it also occurs in destination, time, quantity, and other expressions.

Destination and movement across or through

With в, на, под, and за, the case contrast often concerns a destination or change of location, not simply whether the verb describes movement. You can walk around в парке while remaining in the park: that phrase is prepositional.

Time expressions

Через год means after a year has passed, not “by” a deadline. Под вечер means towards evening. В среду is accusative even though it expresses time; compare prepositional в марте (in March). The question когда? alone does not determine the case.

Approximate quantity and extent

С неделю is an approximate-duration expression with the accusative. It differs from genitive с meaning “from” and instrumental с meaning “with.” По пояс describes an extent and takes the accusative.

Topics and contact with an object

Про means “about” and takes the accusative. Compare про работу with о работе: both can refer to work as a topic, but the case differs.

Instrumental case and its prepositions

The instrumental answers кем? and чем? (by/with whom? by/with what?). It can identify a means or tool, and it has several other uses. English “with” does not always translate as с.

The tool expressions мылом and полотенцем use the instrumental without a preposition. For accompaniment, use с / со + instrumental:

Position and other spatial relationships

These examples use the instrumental, not the accusative. Compare под стол (to a position under the table: accusative) with под столом (under the table: instrumental). Над remains instrumental even with a motion verb, as in Самолёт пролетел над нами.

Prepositional case and its prepositions

The prepositional case is always accompanied by a preposition. Its topic questions are о ком? and о чём? (about whom? about what?). Other prepositional phrases describe location, time, transport, instruments, or clothing.

Topics: о / об / обо

Learn the appropriate form in context: о работе, об отпуске, обо мне. All three forms take the prepositional in this use.

Location and other expressions with в and на

For place expressions, contrast где? (where?) with куда? (where to?): Он работает в ресторане (he works in a restaurant, prepositional) versus Мы идём в ресторан (we are going to the restaurant, accusative). The language and level examples above are other fixed patterns with на.

Time and circumstances

В марте, на прошлой неделе, and при встрече use the prepositional. В среду belongs in the accusative section. При can express circumstances, presence, or a period; its English translation depends on the phrase.

Transport, instruments, and clothing

На машине, на скрипке, and в красном платье are prepositional phrases. In the transport example, на работу is accusative because it describes the destination.

A quick case comparison

Practise a few phrases at a time. Identify the preposition, its meaning, and the case form, then make your own sentence with the same pattern. Return to Part 1 for the genitive examples whenever you need a comparison.

What are cases in Russian?

A case shows a noun’s or pronoun’s role in a sentence. The ending may change, and adjectives or other words that agree with the noun change accordingly. Compare these examples:

Россия, Россию, and России are forms of the same noun: nominative, accusative, and prepositional respectively in these sentences. This change is called declension. Nouns, adjectives, pronouns, participles, and numerals have their own patterns; not every word changes in the same way.

You do not choose between three genders for each noun. Most nouns have a fixed gender; number and case determine which of its forms you need. Several cases can also share the same written form.

Case endings allow some flexibility in Russian word order, but word order still affects emphasis and naturalness. For example, русский язык and русским языком have different forms in Они делают русский язык русским языком (“They make the Russian language what it is”). Learn case forms in natural phrases rather than trying every possible ending.

These questions are memory aids, not a complete rule for translating English. The Russian verb, preposition, and intended meaning determine the construction. A form may be ambiguous without context.

Nominative and prepositions

The nominative commonly identifies the subject and is normally used without a preposition. It can also appear in naming and predicate constructions; it is not limited to subjects. Russian prepositions normally govern one of the other five cases.

Анна and отец are nominative subjects. In the second sentence, поваром is instrumental and в ресторане is prepositional. One sentence can contain several cases.

Genitive and its prepositions

The genitive expresses possession and other relationships, and follows many prepositions. The groups below organize the examples by meaning; they are learning aids rather than rigid grammatical categories. Some prepositions, especially с, take other cases with other meanings.

Absence, exclusion, replacement, and opposition

Location, proximity, and approximate amounts

Напротив means “opposite” in this example, rather than simply “in front of.” Среди and посреди are separate words: среди commonly means “among,” while посреди emphasizes being in the middle of something.

Other uses of у

Possession with у + genitive does not always require есть. Compare У меня есть машина (I have a car) with У меня большая семья (I have a large family). Learn when есть is natural from the whole construction.

Source, material, and movement away

English “from” has several Russian equivalents. Choose according to the relationship: из often pairs with в, and с with на, when describing movement away from a place. These are useful patterns, not a one-word translation for every context.

The class example uses из второго класса for membership in that class. In Я познакомлю тебя с девочкой, с means “with” and takes the instrumental; it is a different construction from genitive с in с яблони. Expanded forms such as со, ото, and изо occur in particular sound combinations: со стола, ото всех, изо всех сил.

Time, purpose, and other useful meanings

Накануне points to the preceding day or period, not generally “around” an event. Вне школы can mean outside the school setting; it need not describe standing just outside a building.

How to practise

Choose a few phrases and change the noun while keeping the same pattern: без сахара → без молока; около дома → около школы; после обеда → после урока. Check the noun’s genitive form in a dictionary when you are unsure.

Next, study prepositions with the dative, accusative, instrumental, and prepositional cases. Keep both parts handy: a familiar preposition may require a different case when its meaning changes.

Nominative case in Russian

The nominative identifies the subject: кто? (who?) or что? (what?). A noun’s dictionary headword is normally its nominative singular form; nouns used only in the plural appear in the nominative plural. This rule concerns noun headwords, not every word in a dictionary.

A noun can also name the subject’s identity or profession. In these present-tense examples, both the subject and the predicate noun are nominative. Russian normally omits the present-tense equivalent of “am/is/are.” Other constructions, including some past-tense sentences with быть, can use the instrumental for the predicate noun.

Prepositional case in Russian

The prepositional case is always used with a preposition. It often answers о ком? (about whom?) or о чём? (about what?), or appears in expressions answering где? (where?) and когда? (when?).

В/во and на often describe location and occur in certain time expressions. О/об/обо means “about” here. При can describe someone’s presence, a period, or circumstances: при Петре Первом (under Peter the Great), for example. Its translation depends on the phrase; it is not a general substitute for “near.”

A preposition alone does not determine the case in every context. Compare в школе (at school: location, prepositional) with в школу (to school: destination, accusative).

1. Location

2. Time expressions

In the last sentence, в прошлом году is a time expression with a special locative form; в Рим describes a destination and is accusative. Do not treat every noun after в as prepositional.

3. The topic of thought or discussion

Singular endings: rules and examples

Declension is the pattern a noun follows when its case changes. The tables below show common patterns; dictionaries help with exceptions and changes in the stem.

First declension: nouns ending in -а or -я

This group includes feminine nouns such as доска (board) and улица (street), and masculine nouns such as папа (dad) and дядя (uncle). The usual prepositional singular ending is -е.

Regular nouns ending in -ия, such as лекция and история, have -ии in the prepositional singular.

Second declension: masculine nouns and neuter nouns

This group includes most masculine nouns ending in a consonant, -ь or -й, and neuter nouns ending in -о or -е. The usual prepositional singular ending is -е. A masculine noun ending in -ь follows a different pattern from a feminine noun ending in -ь.

Regular masculine nouns ending in -ий and neuter nouns ending in -ие use -ии: санаторий → о санатории; здание → о здании. These are useful patterns, but exceptional words and names should be checked individually.

Third declension: feminine nouns ending in -ь

The prepositional singular ending is -и. Some stems also change, as in любовь → любви.

Nouns with adjective endings

Some nouns retain adjective-style endings. Животное (animal) is a noun with this pattern; do not apply the ordinary neuter -о/-е rule to it. Its forms are животное → о животном and животные → о животных.

Special location forms

A small group of nouns has a special form in certain expressions with в or на: в лесу (in the forest), but о лесе (about the forest). Similarly, learn в прошлом году (last year) as a phrase. These forms are often called the locative or second prepositional; they do not replace the regular form in every context.

Plural endings

Ordinary nouns use -ах or -ях in the prepositional plural. The choice depends on the stem and spelling rules, not simply on whether the nominative plural ends in -ы or -и. Compare доски → на досках with дяди → о дядях.

Здание means “building”; its plural is здания. Лезвие means “blade”; its plural is лезвия. They are different words with the same ending pattern.

Some nouns are normally singular in their everyday meanings, including зрение (vision), оружие (weaponry), and жжение (a burning sensation). Learn their usual usage rather than assuming that an ending makes a plural impossible. Others are used only in the plural: ножницы → о ножницах (scissors), деньги → о деньгах (money).

Irregular nouns

Ten neuter nouns end in -мя: бремя, время, вымя, знамя, имя, пламя, племя, семя, стремя, темя. Their prepositional singular has -мени. Other irregular nouns include путь and дитя. Learn these forms individually.

Use об before имени and именах. Дитя is literary; ребёнок and дети are more usual in everyday speech.

Practise with sentences about yourself

Complete each sentence using the words in brackets. Choose the nominative for your identity and the prepositional for these location, month, and topic expressions.

1. Я ________. I am a ________. (учитель, продавец, лётчик)
2. Я живу в ________. I live in ________. (Москва, Лондон, Франция, квартира, дом)
3. Мой день рождения в ________. My birthday is in ________. (сентябрь, май, август)
4. Я мечтаю о ________. I dream of ________. (машина, дом, слава, деньги)

For your own examples, look up the noun’s gender and case forms. Practise the whole phrase—including its preposition—rather than an isolated ending.