Spelling and Punctuation

🇷🇺 Russian Spelling & Punctuation: The Traffic Rules of Writing

Imagine you’re driving a car. Traffic rules keep everyone safe and moving smoothly. Russian spelling and punctuation work the same way—they’re the “traffic rules” that keep your writing clear and understandable!

🎯 What We’ll Learn Together

Think of Russian writing like a game with special rules. Once you know the rules, you’ll always write correctly! Today we’ll discover:

• Spelling rules overview — The main game rules
• Spelling after gutturals — The “back-throat” sounds (г, к, х)
• Spelling after hushings — The “shh” sounds (ж, ш, ч, щ)
• Spelling vs pronunciation — Why we write one thing but say another
• Punctuation basics — The road signs of sentences

📚 Part 1: Spelling Rules Overview

The Big Picture

Russian spelling is like a recipe book. Most of the time, you follow the main recipe. But sometimes, special ingredients (certain letters) need special handling!

The Golden Rule

Write what you hear… MOST of the time!

Unlike English (where “knight” has silent letters), Russian is usually phonetic. If you hear a sound, you write it.

Example:

• мама (mama) = mom → You hear “ma-ma,” you write “ма-ма” ✅
• папа (papa) = dad → You hear “pa-pa,” you write “па-па” ✅

But Wait! Special Rules Exist

Some letter combinations have strict rules. Think of them as VIP guests at a party—they need special treatment!

graph TD
    A["Russian Spelling"] --> B["Regular Words"]
    A --> C["Special Rules"]
    C --> D["After Gutturals<br>г, к, х"]
    C --> E["After Hushings<br>ж, ш, ч, щ"]
    B --> F["Write what<br>you hear!"]

🗣️ Part 2: Spelling After Gutturals (г, к, х)

What Are Gutturals?

Put your hand on your throat and say these sounds:

• Г (g) — like “go”
• К (k) — like “cat”
• Х (kh) — like clearing your throat gently

Feel that? The sound comes from the BACK of your throat. That’s why they’re called “gutturals!”

The Big Rule: No Ы After Gutturals!

NEVER write Ы after г, к, х. ALWAYS use И instead!

Think of it like this: Ы is scared of gutturals and runs away. И bravely takes its place!

Why Does This Happen?

Long ago, Russian speakers found it hard to say “ky” or “gy” sounds. Try saying “кы” fast—it’s awkward! So the language evolved to use “ки” instead. Much smoother!

Memory Trick:

“Gutturals are GUARDS. They guard the gate and say: ‘No Ы allowed! Only И may pass!’”

Real Examples

• нога (leg) → ноги (legs) — not ногы
• рука (hand) → руки (hands) — not рукы
• книга (book) → книги (books) — not книгы

🤫 Part 3: Spelling After Hushings (ж, ш, ч, щ)

What Are Hushings?

Make these sounds and notice—they all sound like “shushing” someone:

• Ж (zh) — like “treasure”
• Ш (sh) — like “ship”
• Ч (ch) — like “church”
• Щ (shch) — like “fresh cheese”

The Hushing Rules

Hushings are picky eaters! They only “like” certain letters after them.

Rule 1: No Ы After Hushings!

Just like gutturals, hushings HATE Ы. Use И instead!

Rule 2: No Ю or Я After Hushings!

Hushings prefer their soft friends У and А!

Examples:

• чудо (miracle) — not чюдо
• шапка (hat) — not шяпка
• часы (clock) — not чясы
• щука (pike fish) — not щюка

Rule 3: О vs Е After Hushings (Stress Matters!)

This is the trickiest part! After hushings:

• Stressed = Write О (жОлтый would be wrong, use жЁлтый)
• Unstressed = Write Е

Wait, it’s actually simpler for beginners:

• In word ROOTS, stressed “o” sound → write Ё (жёлтый = yellow)
• In ENDINGS, stressed “o” sound → write О (большой = big)

Examples:

• шёлк (silk) — Ё in the root, stressed
• большой (big) — О in the ending, stressed
• хорошего (of good) — Е in ending, unstressed

graph TD
    A["After ж, ш, ч, щ"] --> B{Where is the<br>O/E sound?}
    B -->|In Root| C{Stressed?}
    B -->|In Ending| D{Stressed?}
    C -->|Yes| E["Write Ё"]
    C -->|No| F["Write Е"]
    D -->|Yes| G["Write О"]
    D -->|No| H["Write Е"]

🔊 Part 4: Spelling vs Pronunciation

The Sneaky Sounds

Here’s where Russian gets tricky! Sometimes we WRITE one thing but SAY another. It’s like magic—the letters change their costumes!

Vowel Reduction

When vowels are NOT stressed, they become “lazy” and change their sound:

Example Deep Dive:

• молоко (milk) is written мо-ло-КО
• We say it like “ma-la-KO”
• Only the LAST syllable (stressed) keeps its true “o” sound!

Consonant Changes

At the end of words, voiced consonants become voiceless:

Memory Trick:

“At the end of a word, voiced consonants go to sleep and whisper!”

How to Know the Correct Spelling

Put the word in a form where you CAN hear the sound clearly!

• хлеб → хлеба (of bread) — Now you hear the “b”!
• мороз → морозы (frosts) — Now you hear the “z”!
• друг → друга (of friend) — Now you hear the “g”!

✍️ Part 5: Punctuation Basics

Punctuation = Road Signs

Just like road signs tell drivers what to do, punctuation tells readers how to read!

The Main Punctuation Marks

The COMMA Rules (Most Important!)

Russian uses MORE commas than English! Here are the key rules:

1. Before Conjunctions in Complex Sentences

Always put a comma before:

• что (that)
• который (which/who)
• когда (when)
• если (if)
• потому что (because)

Example:

• Я знаю**,** что ты умный. (I know that you’re smart.)
• Дом**,** который стоит там**,** красивый. (The house that stands there is beautiful.)

2. Around “Please” (пожалуйста)

Example:

• Скажите**,** пожалуйста**,** где метро? (Tell me, please, where is the metro?)

3. Listing Items

Just like English:

• Я купил хлеб**,** молоко**,** сыр и масло. (I bought bread, milk, cheese, and butter.)

The DASH (тире) — Russian’s Special Friend

Russian uses a DASH where English uses “is/are”:

Example:

• Москва — столица России. (Moscow is the capital of Russia.)
• Мой брат — врач. (My brother is a doctor.)

Rule: When the subject and predicate are both nouns, use тире!

Quotation Marks

Russian uses «ёлочки» (little fir trees), not “straight quotes”!

Example:

• Он сказал: «Привет!» (He said: “Hello!”)

graph TD
    A["Punctuation"] --> B[". Period"]
    A --> C[", Comma"]
    A --> D["! Exclamation"]
    A --> E["? Question"]
    A --> F["— Dash"]
    A --> G["« » Quotes"]
    C --> H["Before что,<br>который, если..."]
    F --> I["Replaces<br>is/are"]

🎉 Congratulations!

You now know the essential spelling and punctuation rules of Russian! Remember:

1. Gutturals (г, к, х) — Never use Ы after them, use И!
2. Hushings (ж, ш, ч, щ) — No Ы, Ю, or Я after them!
3. Spelling vs Sound — Russian writes one thing, often says another (check with related words!)
4. Commas — Use them before что, который, когда, etc.
5. Dash — Replaces “is/are” between two nouns

Your Journey Continues! 🚀

These rules might seem like a lot, but with practice, they’ll become automatic—just like riding a bike! Keep reading Russian, keep writing, and soon you won’t even think about the rules. They’ll just flow naturally!

Remember: Every expert was once a beginner. You’ve taken a big step today! 🌟