Break the Cyrillic Code. Complete Russian Phonetics Course

The first thing that gives an accent is the absence of soft and hard consonants. For example, when all the "Л" sound the same. In Russian, almost all consonants have a soft and hard version. Mastering this skill is important not only for beautiful pronunciation, but also so as not to mislead listeners.

We will read combinations of consonants with vowels (so, the syllables). Then we will read the words. At the end, we will read 10 phrases - we will look for soft and hard sounds in them.

You will also have downloadable mp3 AUDIO VERSION and PDF of the lesson, so you can practice on your own until you are satisfied.

Let's practice pronouncing soft and hard consonants: repeat after me.

Use the AUDIO VERSION of this lesson as well as the PDF file to polish your pronunciation.

DICTATION 1 is in video as well as in audio format (mp3). Try to write 27 words with hard and soft consonants.

You will find the keys in the PDF file.

DICTATION 2 is in video as well as in audio format (mp3). Try to write 28 words with hard and soft consonants.

You will find the keys in the PDF file.

The name "Елена" has two "E"s, and they are pronounced differently. Do you remember what it depends on? Let's see how the iotized vowels "Я", "Ю", "Е", "Ё" are pronounced in different positions in a word.

In addition to the video you have also an AUDIO VERSION of the lesson and a PDF file (use it to work on pronunciation and review the material of the lesson).

Here is the second part of the lesson about the iotized vowels, dedicated to NON-iotized vowels (А, У, Э, О, И). I think it will be interesting to compare words with iotized and non-iotated vowels. At the end of the lesson, we will read 8 phrases and look for iotized vowels in them in different positions.

DICTATION 3 is in video as well as in audio format (mp3). I will dictate 26 words that have iotized vowels. I pronounce the words as clearly as possible (without the effect of reduction, which we will talk about in the next lesson). Keys to the dictation are in the file PDF.

Have you heard how Russians pronounce the words "Пока" (Bye), "спасибо" (thank you), "хорошо" (good), "Как дела?" (How are you?). Now that you know the Russian letters, you must ask me: why do we hear [пака] and not [пока]; [спасиба] and not [спасибо]; [харашо] and not [хорошо]; [как_дила] and not [как дела]. It's a matter of stress. Foreigners try to pronounce all letters very well, and this creates a strong accent. Learn to reduce vowels and you will sound much more like Russian speakers.

We will read words and phrases and compare how vowels sound under stress and in an unstressed position. Then we will read the dialogue with transcription and 8 phrases in which we will look for letters "О", "Е", "Я" under stress and in an unstressed position.

You can practice pronunciation yourself with the help of AUDIO VERSION of the lesson and the PDF.

We often hear "A" where it is necessary to write "O", in the same way we often hear "И" where it is necessary to write "Е" or "Я". How do Russian speakers know what letter to write? Do they remember all the words by heart? Of course not. There is a little secret that helps a lot.

DICTATION 4 is in video as well as in audio format (mp3). Try to write 18 words. The keys are in the PDF file.

Do you know how the meaning of the word "семя" (seed) changes when you add the Soft Sign? It becomes "семья" (family). The word “мат" (curse words) with the Soft Sign becomes "мать" (mother). The Soft Sign has no sound, but changes the meaning of the words.

Let's compare words with and without the Soft Sign (knowledge about the pronunciation of iotated vowels will come in handy). We will talk about two functions of the Soft Sign and find out what it has in common with vowels. We will also do some phonetic exercises to improve pronunciation. At the end of the lesson, we will read 19 phrases made up of words with and without the Soft Sign.

Use the AUDIO VERSION of the lesson and the PDF to practice more.

DICTATION 5 is in video as well as in audio format (mp3). Write 24 words in which the Soft Sign softens the consonants. What consonant do you hear at the end - soft or hard? The keys are in the PDF file.

DICTATION 6 is in video as well as in audio format (mp3). Write 20 words in which the Soft Sign separates consonants and vowels. How are iotated vowels pronounced after a consonant - with or without [й]?

The keys are in the PDF file.

Do you remember that it is not always necessary to pronounce letters clearly? This time it's about consonants. You will learn how to say "паб" (pub) and "пабы" (pubs) with a standart Russian pronunciation and why, when we talk about the chef, sometimes we call him [шеф], and sometimes [шев].

Use the AUDIO VERSION of the lesson to repeat pairs of voiced and voiceless consonants and the words that contain them. Try to determine by ear in which words there are the Voicing or Stunning effects. To check yourself use the PDF file.

DICTATION 7 is in video as well as in audio format (mp3). Write 28 words in which the paired consonants Б, П, В, Ф are in different positions. The keys are in the PDF file.

DICTATION 8 is in video as well as in audio format (mp3). Write 28 words in which the paired consonants Д, T, Г, K are in different positions. To understand better how the Voicing and the Stunning work, pay attention to the words you misspell (what comes after the letter you misspell?). The keys are in the PDF file.

DICTATION 9 is in video as well as in audio format (mp3). Write 31 words in which the paired consonants З, С, Ж, Ш are in different positions. To understand better how the Voicing and the Stunning work, pay attention to the words you misspell (what comes after the letter you misspell?). The keys are in the PDF file.

From tje Lesson 8 you know that PAIRED consonants can change the sound. For example, the letter "Ж" is pronounced differently in the words "гараж" (garage) and "гаражи" (garages)"; and even the letter "В" in the surname "Иванов(а)" is pronounced differently, depending on , male or female is the surname.

Do consonants that do not have a pair change the sound? For example, will the consonant "P" be pronounced differently in the words "бар" (bar) and "бары" (bars)? What do you think? Let's compare, as always, different words and find patterns.

For more practice use the AUDIO VERSION of the lesson and the PDF file.

DICTATION 10 is in video as well as in audio format (mp3). Write 32 words in which UNPAIRED consonants (unvoiced Х, Ц, Ч, Щ and voiced Л, М, Н, Р) are in different positions. The keys are in the PDF file.

The section for perfectionists opens with a lesson on vowel reduction. You thought you already knew everything about it? But no! Firstly, the vowels "О", "Е" и "Я" in an unstressed position not only change the sound, but also progressively weaken. Secondly, the reduction applies not only to these vowels, but also to - "У", "Ю", "Ы", "И", and even "A"! The only vowel that is not afraid of reduction is "Ё". Are you curious why?

As usually, in addition, you will have an AUDIO VERSION of the lesson and a PDF file with the lesson materials. Listen and read words that have vowels in different positions.

We have been studying the rules of phonetics for so long that it is time to look at deviations from the rules. For example, reduction is stronger in the middle of a word, but at the beginning and at the end we pronounce even those vowels that should be reduced. Why?

In this lesson, I propose to check ALL combinations of vowels in Russian (I'm not kidding - ALL, I have done a great job and deserve a PhD, at least). I will show you all the possible combinations of vowels and explain why are all other combinations basically impossible. Ready?

AUDIO VERSION: listen and repeat all possible (and several "impossible", but available) combinations of vowels.  Try to read it yourself in the PDF file.

It's time to question both Stunning and Voicing. So, we know that paired consonants, firstly, change the sound themselves and, secondly, force the previous consonant to change sound adapting to them. We also know that unpaired consonants do not change the sound. It remains to find out whether unpaired consonants make other letters change sound, that is, adapt to them. Let's figure it out. I do not promise that it will be easy, but it will  be useful.

Don't forget about the AUDIO VERSION and the PDF: read and compare words with paired and unpaired voiced and unvoiced consonants.

DICTATION 11: write 40 words with hard and soft consonants. The last dictation of the course is devoted to the rule of hardness and softness. This rule knows not so many exceptions (remember how words like “Internet” are pronounced, not according to the rules?). However, this is not a reason not to pay attention to this rule in the section for perfectionists.

Dictation 11 is in video as well as in audio format (mp3). The keys are in the PDF file.

We continue break rules. In Russian words there are sequences of 2, 3 and even 4 consonants in a row, but Russian speakers are too lazy (or not capable enough) to pronounce such difficult combinations. Therefore, we did not come up with anything better than just skip one consonant. Great solution, right? But we have not yet quite agreed on which consonant not to pronounce...

Let's look at the words in which the consonants are pronounced differently or not at all and let's compare them with words in which the same combinations of consonants are still pronounced. And please, never, never ask me why it's so.

You will also have an AUDIO VERSION of the lesson and a PDF file to practice on your own. Listen and read words in which consonants behave strangely. Try to understand. Or at least just remember.

We can talk about intonation for a long time, but it's useless. The intonation must be imitated! This is what we are about to do. In the first part of the lesson we speak about Affirmative intonation.

Lesson 14 turned out to be long, so I divided it into three parts: you've watched the first part about the Affirmative Intonation, now it's time to study the Question Intonation.

In the third part of the lesson we will practice looking for the Intonational Centre of the phrases. I go beyond myself and declare poetry, do not miss this spectacle event!

Alexander Blok is so great that his poetry cannot be spoiled even by my reading. But I found just in case two videos on YouTube where these poems are read by more talented people; You will find links among the Resources, as well as in the PDF file. I recommend that you learn these verses by heart! Use the AUDIO VERSION (mp3) of this lesson to learn them.

Finally, the moment has come when we will not limit ourselves to either syllables, or words, or even phrases. We will aim at reading entire texts!!! Pretty simple, but nevertheless full-fledged texts.

In addition to this lesson, as always, there is an AUDIO VERSION and a PDF file. Use them together: listen, repeat and read 5 texts.

FINAL TASK: Choose the text you like. Record your reading and send me the audio for feedback. The email you will find at the end of the lesson.

P.S. You can read not only the texts from the lesson 15, but also the verses from the lesson 14.

There are many borrowed English words in Russian. This is good news, because if you read well, you will be able to recognize these words and your vocabulary will grow quickly. I picked up words borrowed from English  and I hope you find it interesting.

In addition to this lesson, there is a PDF file with the English words and an mp3 AUDIO VERSION, so listen and repeat after me.

You can also use this lesson as an extra practice for Unit 1 to help you remember the letters).

There are many borrowed Italian words in Russian. This is good news, because if you read well, you will be able to recognize these words and your vocabulary will grow quickly. I picked up words borrowed from Italian  and I hope you find it interesting.

In addition to this lesson, there is a PDF file with the Italian words and an AUDIO VERSION, so listen and repeat after me.

You can also use this lesson as an extra practice for Unit 1 to help you remember the letters).

Attention! In this lesson I speak Italian))