- Define and explain My Family in your own words
- Use key terms such as мама (máma) — mum accurately
- Apply what you have learned to new examples and questions
- Avoid the common mistakes learners make with this topic
This is the chapter where Russian gets personal. You will learn to talk about the people and places that matter most — your family, your friends, your school and your hobbies. By the end you will be able to introduce your whole world in Russian, in full sentences.
This lesson focuses on My Family: name your family members, from мама (máma — mum) to двоюродный брат (dvoyúrodnyy brat — cousin), and describe them.
Name your family members, from мама (máma — mum) to двоюродный брат (dvoyúrodnyy brat — cousin), and describe them.
Key ideas
Мой, моя, моё: possessives agree
The word for 'my' changes to match the noun: мой брат (moy brat — my brother, masculine), моя сестра (moyá sestrá — my sister, feminine), моё хобби (moyó khóbbi — my hobby, neuter). Get the gender right and the possessive follows automatically.
Любить: loving things in the present tense
The verb любить (lyubít' — to love, to like) conjugates as я люблю (ya lyublyú — I love), ты любишь (ty lyúbish — you love), он/она любит (on/oná lyúbit — he/she loves). So Я люблю музыку (ya lyublyú múzyku — I love music), and Моя сестра любит спорт (moyá sestrá lyúbit sport — my sister loves sport).
Key term — мама (máma) — mum: The word for mother. Note the double М and the stress on the first syllable: МА-ма.
Build the sentence 'My brother plays football' in Russian.
'My brother' — брат is masculine, so 'my' is мой: мой брат (moy brat). The verb 'plays' — играть (igrát' — to play): он играет (on igráyet — he plays). Football is a borrowed word that never changes: футбол (futból). Put it together: Мой брат играет в футбол (moy brat igráyet f futból — my brother plays football).
Answer: Мой брат играет в футбол (moy brat igráyet f futból) — 'My brother plays football'.
- Saying моя брат Брат (brat — brother) is masculine, so it must be мой брат (moy brat — my brother), not моя брат.
- Forgetting the prepositional ending in в школе It is в школе (f shkolé — at school), not в школа. The -а changes to -е after в.
Practice
Моя сестра (moyá sestrá).
Я люблю музыку (ya lyublyú múzyku).
Друзья (druz'yá — friends).
Я учусь в школе (ya uchús' f shkolé — I study at school).
Quick check
Which of these best defines "мама (máma) — mum"?
Translate 'She loves sport' into Russian.
How do you say 'my hobby' (хобби is neuter)?
- My Family: name your family members, from мама (máma — mum) to двоюродный брат (dvoyúrodnyy brat — cousin), and describe them.
- Мой, моя, моё: possessives agree: The word for 'my' changes to match the noun: мой брат (moy brat — my brother, masculine), моя сестра (moyá sestrá — my sister, feminine), моё хобби (moyó khóbbi — my hobby, neuter).
- брат (brat) — brother: A masculine noun.
- Watch out for: saying моя брат