| Non-softening | Softening | |
|---|---|---|
| а [а] | < -- > | я [йа] |
| о [о] | < -- > | ё [йо] |
| у [у] | < -- > | ю [йу] |
| э [э] | < -- > | е [йэ] |
| ы [ы] | < -- > | и [и] |
Core rule:
- Softening vowels я, ё, ю, е, и after a consonant sound like their pairs а, о, у, э, ы and soften the preceding consonant (marked with ʹ).
- Softening vowels я, ё, ю, е at the start of a word or after another vowel, are pronounced with a short "y" glide: йа, йо, йу, йэ (no consonant to soften here).
- Non-softening vowels а, о, у, э, ы are almost always pronounced as written (no "y "glide) and never soften the consonant before them.
Vowel Pairs and Pronunciation
Skipping special rules after sibilants (see exceptions below).
| Non- softening |
Softening | After a consonant | After a vowel | Word start |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| а |
ма́ма [m a-ma] |
диа́метр [d'i- a-m'etr] | а́том [ a-tom] | |
| я | мя́со [m'a-so] | края́ [kra- ya] | я́блоко [ ya-blo-ko] | |
| о | мо́ст [most] | зоопа́рк [za-a-park] | океа́н [o-ke-an] | |
| ё | лёд [l'od] | поёт [pa-yot] | ё́лка [yol-ka] | |
| у | су́п [sup] | соу́с [sous] | у́м [um] | |
| ю | лю́ди [l'u-di] | пою́ [pa-yu] | ю́мор [yu-mar] | |
| э | нэ́п [nep] | поэ́т | экза́мен | |
| е | коме́та [ko-m'e-ta] | пе́ние [p'e-ni-ye] | е́нот [ye-not] | |
| ы (hard "i") |
мы [mɨ] | |||
| и (soft “i”) |
мир [m'ir] | мои́[mo-i] (note: no [yi]) | игла́ [i-gla] (note: no [yi]) |
Why и/ы pair is different: unlike я/а, ё/о, ю/у, е/э, the pair и/ы does not alternate with a y-glide at the start of words. И is simply [i] and softens the preceding consonant; ы is a separate vowel [ɨ] that follows hard consonants and never adds a [y] sound.
Tip: compare мир [m'ir] "peace/world" vs. мы [mɨ] "we".
- ж, ш are always hard; ч, щ are always soft (the vowel doesn't change that).
- ц is usually hard; before ц и often sounds like ы ("цы")
- After ж, ш, ч, щ, ц the "y-glide" may disappear (e.g., же is [zhe], not [zhye]).
- Don't worry about exceptions for now. They are infrequent and you’ll still be understood. We skip these in the table to keep the core rule clear. Make sure to practice this main rule until it becomes automatic.
Practice: Soft vs. Hard (paired examples)
We use ' to mark a softened consonant. It is always after a consonant; unlike the stress mark ('), which is always above or next to a vowel (e.g., in [ek-zá-m'en] a is stressed and m is soft).
- ю́мор — humor [yu-mar]
- у́м — mind [um]
- Ева́нгелие - The Gospel [ye-ván-g'e-l'i-ye]
- ено́т — racoon [ye-nót]
- экза́мен — exam [ek-zá-m'en]
- лю́к — hatch [l'uk]
- лу́к — onion/bow [luk]
- би́ть — to beat [b'it']
- бы́ть — to be [bɨt']
- ге́незис — genesis(origin) [g'e-n'e-z'is]
- га́мма — gamma [gá-ma]
- дья́кон - deacon [d'ya-kan]
- дека́н - dean [de-kán] *
- до́м — home/house [dom]
- пе́снь — hymn/song [p'esn']
- Па́сха — Pascha/Easter [pá-scha]
- фи́льм — film [f'il'm]
- миф — myth [m'if]
* - decan is pronounced as [d'e-kan] or [de-kan]. The second variant is an exception.
More good pairs to try aloud: свет / святой [sv'et / sv'a-toy], пи́лот / пыль [p'ilot / pyl'], ге́ний / го́род [g'e-niy / go-rod].