Ударение и русские гласные
- Русский алфавит (Russian alphabet)
- Ударение и русские гласные 1, 2, 3 (Stress and Russian vowels)
- Писать на русском (Write Russian)
- Фонология русского языка (Russian phonology)
- Старые названия русских букв (Old names of Russian letters)
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The stress is an accent placed on a certain vowel. A stressed vowel is pronounced more energetically, louder a bit longer than any other vowels in that word. Unstressed vowels are pronounced less energetically, a bit shorter and they lose their clarity. Unstressed vowels may even undergo qualitative phonetic change. They may sound different.
- а́ - я́ о́ - ё э́ - е́ у́ - ю́ ы́ - и́
- The vowels ы, и, у, ю, ё don't change.
- The vowels а, е, о, э, я change and sound different when the accent changes its position in a Russian word from one vowel to another.
- Endings -его and -ого of pronouns and adjectives in the genitive and accusative cases are pronounced as ево and ово.
Ученик: I remember from exercises with hands that if the stress falls on у́ in the word pу́ки then it is nominative plural but if it falls on и́ - pуки́ then it is genitive singular. What about но́ги? Where the correct stress is?
- Одна́ и одна́ нога́ э́то но́ги, э́то две́ ноги́.
- Одна́ и одна́ рука́ э́то ру́ки, э́то две́ руки́.
Учительница: A very good question. The same rule applies for но́ги:
- The stress falls on o in the word но́ги - nominative plural for нога́, that is why o is stressed and pronounced like the o in nor.
- The stress falls on и in the word ноги́ - genitive singular for нога́, that is why o is unstressed and pronounced like the u in up.
Read lesson Let's chat about stress and... feet.
Ученик: I read it! You wrote that there is no rule to determine where the stress is in a Russian word!
Учительница: It is so.
You'll have to learn the same way as a child learns. Watch the video. Maya pronounces the word уша́м correctly on the first one and incorrectly у́шам on the second one: Я мешаю глазам смотреть. Я мешаю носу дышать. Я мешаю ушам слушать. Я мешаю рту говорить. (I don't let my eyes see (look). I don't let my nose breathe. I don't let my ears hear. I don't let my mouth speak.)
Ученик: I won't be able to learn stresses!
Учительница: Don't worry, you will learn! Notice the way Ania sings "a"'s instead of "o"'s in "Голова и плечи, и коленки, и носочки" and try to sing the song with her. Sing Russian songs and learn few by heart. Make Russian vocology exercises.
Ученик: I don't want to learn that much by heart! Is there any other way to know how to pronounce Russian words?
Учительница: I have made a table for you. Listen and see how the stress position influences the pronunciation of the vowels in the table on this page. You can do it!
Ученик: Alright, so if I see the word written and somehow I know where the stress should be, with the help of this table, I will be able to pronounce the word correctly, is that so?
Учительница: Yes it is. Russian vowels change the way they sound. The vowels а, о, д, э and я do this a lot. When stressed, they behave normally and are pronounced in the usual way, but when they're in an unstressed position, they go through a process called vowel reduction. Notice that letter и is pronounced as ы after ж, ц, ш.
| 2nd before stress | 1st before stress | Under stress | After stress | After stress |
Words |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Сло- | ва́ | - | - | Cлова́ |
Words | |
| ба- | ра- | ба́н | - | - | бараба́н | drum |
| мо- | ло- | ко́ | - | - | молоко́ | milk |
| - | - | о́- | ко- | ло | о́коло | around |
| - | - | до́к- | тор | - | до́ктор | doctor |
| - | ок- | но́ | - | - | окно́ | window |
| о- | зе- | ро́ | - | - | озеро́ | lake |
| - | - | Ло́н- | дон | - | Ло́ндон | London |
| - | Мос- | ква́ | - | - | Москва́ | Moscow |
| шо- | ко- | ла́д | - | - | шокола́д | chocolate |
| кро- | ко- | ди́л | - | - | крокоди́л | crocodile |
| - | спа- | си́- | бо | - | спаси́бо | Thank you |
| те- | ле- | ви́- | зор | - | телеви́зор | TV |
| - | эк- | ра́н | - | - | экра́н | screen |
| хо- | ро- | шо́ | - | - | хорошо́ | good |
| - | - | пло́- | хо | - | пло́хо | bad |
| - | - | сло́- | во | - | сло́во | word |
| 2nd before stress | 1st before stress | Under stress | After stress | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| а | e in pen | u in up | a in ask | e in pen |
| о | e in pen | u in up | o in nor | e in pen |
| э | e in pen | e in pen | eh in Eh! | e in pen |
| e | e in pen | ee in feet | ye in yet | e in pen |
| я | e in pen | ee in feet | ya in soya | e in pen |
| и | ee in feet | ee in feet | ee in feet | ee in feet |
| ы | i in it | i in it | i in it | i in it |
| у | oo in book | oo in book | oo in book | oo in book |
| ю | you in you | you in you | you in you | you in you |
| ё | yo in York | yo in York | yo in York | yo in York |
}}
| Andrey Zaliznyak's stress patterns of Russian nouns’
The stress falls on: | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pattern number | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| in singular | on stem | on ending | on stem | on ending | on stem | on ending |
| in nominative plural | on stem | on ending | on ending | on stem | on stem | on stem |
| in genitive, dative, instrumental, prepositional plural | on stem | on ending | on ending | on stem | on ending | on ending |
| Example | мотор | вещество | слой | земля | корень | полоса |