Introduction 1
About This Book 1
Conventions Used in This Book 2
Foolish Assumptions 2
Icons Used in This Book 3
Where to Go from Here 4
Chapter 1: I Say It How? Speaking Russian 5
Looking at the Russian Alphabet 5
From A to Ya: Making sense of Cyrillic 5
I know you! Familiar-looking, same-sounding letters 10
Playing tricks: Familiar-looking, different-sounding letters 10
How bizarre: Weird-looking letters 11
Sounding Like a Real Russian with Proper Pronunciation 12
Understanding the one-letter/one-sound principle 12
Giving voice to vowels 12
Enunciating consonants correctly 15
Surveying sticky sounds 17
Chapter 2: Grammar on a Diet: Just the Basics 21
Making the Russian Cases 22
Nominative case 22
Genitive case 22
Accusative case 22
Dative case 23
Instrumental case 23
Prepositional case 23
Building Your Grammar Base with Nouns and Pronouns 24
Getting the lowdown on the gender of nouns 24
Checking out cases for nouns 24
Putting plurals into their cases 27
Picking out pronouns 34
Decorating Your Speech with Adjectives 39
Always consenting: Adjective-noun agreement 39
A lot in common: Putting adjectives into other cases 41
Nowhere to be found: The lack of articles in Russian 43
Adding Action with Verbs 43
Spotting infinitives 43
Living in the present tense 43
Keep it simple: Forming the past tense 44
Past again: Perfective or imperfective? 45
Planning for the future tense 46
Using the unusual verb byt’ (to be) 47
Chapter 3: Numerical Gumbo: Counting of All Kinds 49
Counting in Russian 49
Numbers 0 through 9 50
Numbers 10 through 19 51
First, Second: Ordinal Numbers 51
The Clock’s Ticking: Telling Time 52
Counting the hours 52
Marking the minutes 54
Asking for the time 56
Knowing the times of the day 56
Monday, Tuesday: Weekdays 57
Talking about time relative to the present 58
Checking Your Calendar 59
Recognizing the names of the months 59
Saying the year 60
Surveying the seasons 61
Money, Money, Money 62
Changing money 62
Heading to the ATM 62
Spending money 63
Paying with credit cards 64
Chapter 4: Making New Friends and Enjoying Small Talk 65
To Whom Am I Speaking? Being Informal or Formal 65
Comings and Goings: Saying Hello and Goodbye 66
Saying hello to different people 66
Handling “How are you?” 67
Taking your leave 68
Break the Ice: Making Introductions 68
Getting acquainted 68
Asking for people’s names and introducing yourself 69
Introducing your friends and family 70
Let Me Tell You Something: Talking about Yourself 71
Stating where you’re from 71
Telling your age 72
Talking about Family 73
Beginning with basic terms for family members 73
Talking about family members with the verb “to have” 74
Where Do You Work? 75
Let’s Get Together: Giving and Receiving Contact Information 78
I’m Sorry! I Don’t Understand 79
Chapter 5: Enjoying a Drink and a Snack (or a Meal!) 81
Focusing on Food Basics 81
Eating up 81
Drinking up 83
Using utensils and tableware 85
Enjoying Different Meals 86
What’s for breakfast? Almost anything! 86
Let’s do dinner (not lunch) 87
A simple supper 90
Going Out for Groceries 90
Picking out produce 90
Surveying other grocery items 92
Eating Out with Ease 93
Deciding on a place to eat 94
The art of ordering a meal 95
Receiving and paying the bill 96
Chapter 6: Shop ’Til You Drop 97
Where and How to Buy Things the Russian Way 97
You Wear It Well: Shopping for Clothes 99
Seeking specific items of clothing 99
Describing items in color 102
Finding the right size 103
Trying on clothing 103
This or That? Deciding What You Want 104
Expressing likes and dislikes 105
Comparing two items 106
Talking about what you like most (or least) 107
You Gotta Pay to Play 108
Chapter 7: Making Leisure a Top Priority 109
Together Wherever We Go: Making Plans to Go Out 109
Going Out on the Town 111
On the big screen: Going to the movies 111
It’s classic: Taking in the Russian ballet and theater 112
Culture club: Visiting a museum 114
Shootin’ the Breeze about Hobbies 115
Reading All About It 116
Have you read it? 117
What do you like to read? 117
Rejoicing in the Lap of Nature 119
Enjoying the country house 119
Skiing in the Caucasus 120
Lying around at Lake Baikal 120
Doing Things with Your Hands 121
Being crafty 121
Playing music 122
Scoring with Sports 123
Chapter 8: When You Gotta Work 125
Searching for a Job 125
Discovering where to look 125
Contacting employers 126
Clarifying job responsibilities 127
Communicating in the Workplace 128
Making an appointment 128
Sticking to workplace etiquette 129
Ringing Up Telephone Basics 130
Brushing up on phone vocabulary 130
Basic telephone etiquette 132
Anticipating different responses 133
Leaving a message with a person 134
Talking to an answering machine 135
Sending a Letter, a Fax, or an E-Mail 136
Chapter 9: I Get Around: Transportation 139
Understanding Verbs of Motion 139
Going by foot or vehicle habitually 140
Going by foot or vehicle at the present time 142
Explaining where you’re going 143
Navigating the Airport 144
Checking in and boarding your flight 144
Handling passport control and Customs 145
Conquering Public Transportation 146
Taking a taxi 146
Using minivans 147
Catching buses, trolley buses, and trams 148
Hopping onto the subway 148
Hopping on a train 149
Asking “Where” and “How” Questions 150
Where is it? 150
How do I get there? 151
Understanding Specific Directions 151
Recognizing prepositions 152
Keeping “right” and “left” straight 153
Making sense of commands 154
Describing Distances 156
Chapter 10: Laying Down Your Weary Head: House or Hotel 157
Hunting for an Apartment or a House 157
Talking about an apartment or a house 158
Asking the right questions 160
Sealing the deal 161
Settling Into Your New Digs 161
Knowing the names of different rooms 161
Buying furniture 162
Booking the Hotel That’s Right for You 163
Making a reservation 164
Checking In and Out 166
Enduring the registration process 166
Taking a tour of your room 167
Familiarizing yourself with the facilities 168
Meeting the staff 169
Reporting a broken item 169
Requesting missing items 170
Asking to change rooms 171
Checking out and paying your bill 171
Chapter 11: Dealing with Emergencies 173
Finding Help in Case of Accidents 173
Asking for help 174
Calling the right number 175
Reporting a problem 175
Requesting English-speaking help 176
Receiving Medical Care 176
Knowing your own anatomy 177
Describing your symptoms to a doctor 178
Announcing allergies or special conditions 180
Undergoing an examination and getting a diagnosis 181
Visiting a pharmacy 182
Calling the Police When You’re the Victim of a Crime 183
Chapter 12: Ten Favorite Russian Expressions 185
Oj! 185
Davaj 185
Pryedstav’tye Syebye 186
Poslushajtye! 186
Pir Goroj 186
Ya Tryebuyu Prodolzhyeniya Bankyeta 187
Slovo — Syeryebro, A Molchaniye — Zoloto 187
Odna Golova Khorosho, A Dvye — Luchshye 187
Drug Poznayotsya V Byedye 188
Staryj Drug Luchshye Novykh Dvukh 188
Chapter 13: Ten Phrases That Make You Sound Russian 189
Tol’ko Poslye Vas! 189
Vy Syegodnya Pryekrasno Vyglyaditye! 189
Zakhoditye Na Chaj! 190
Ugosh’ajtyes’! 190
Priyatnogo Appetita! 191
Syadyem Na Dorozhku! 191
Sadis’, V Nogakh Pravdy Nyet 191
Ni Pukha, Ni Pyera! 192
Tseluyu 192
S Lyogkim Parom! 192
Index 193
