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Now that we have done the hard work learning some Russian grammar, it is time to start using it. In this lesson we will form simple Russian phrases and sentences. After this lesson you should be able to ask or tell people what you want and like.
To Love
Let's start with the Russian verb "to love":
Любить (Люблю, Любишь) (View Conjugations)
Remember that a noun after “I love” should be in the accusative case as it is the object of the sentence. Here are some uses of the word:
Я люблю спорт - I love sport.
Я люблю музыку - I love music.
Я не люблю музыку - I don't like music.
Ты любишь музыку? - Do you love music?
Я люблю Москву - I love Moscow.
Он любит Москву - He loves Moscow.
Иван любит чай - Ivan loves tea.
Надя любит вино - Nadya loves wine.
Надя не любит вино - Nadya doesn't like wine.
"I love you" in Russian
You should now know enough Russian to say 'I love you'
Я тебя люблю - I love you.
This particular phrase is usually said with the word order above. It would still make sense to say: Я люблю тебя. Try inserting different pronouns (from lesson 5) into this phrase to change the meaning. Remember to select the pronoun to match the case:
Я его люблю - I love him.
Я её люблю - I love her.
Она любит меня - She loves me
What?
The word "Что?" (pronounced "shto?") means "What?". You can use it to form questions.
Что ты любишь? - What do you love?
However, if you see the word "Что" in the middle of a sentence, it is probably the conjunction "that". The word "Что" has two uses, so don't be confused. An example could be:
Я знаю, что ты любишь музыку. - I know that you love music.
Using other Russian verbs
To express yourself better in Russian you will need to learn some more Russian verbs. Let's introduce some new Russian verbs now. If you would like, you can see how these verbs are conjugated by clicking here.
Смотреть - to watch.
Читать - to read.
Слушать - to listen
Изучать - to study
Думать - to think
Работать - to work
Хотеть - to want
Here are some possible uses of these verbs:
Я смотрю телевизор - I am watching television.
Я слушаю радио - I am listening to the radio.
Я слушаю музыку - I am listening to music.
Я читаю журнал - I am reading a magazine.
Я читаю газету - I am reading the newspaper
Я читаю книгу - I am reading a book.
Я изучаю русский язык - I study Russian. (lit: I study the Russian language).
Я так думаю - I think so!
Как вы думаете? - What do you think? (lit: How do you think?)
Я хочу чай - I want tea.
Что вы хотите? - What do you want?
Sometime you will want to talk about an action. For example "I like to read" or "I want to read". In such cases you are using 2 verbs in a row. In Russian you should leave the 2nd verb in the infinitive form. For example:
Я люблю читать - I love to read.
Я люблю путешествовать - I love to travel.
Я хочу купить журнал - I want to buy a magazine.
Very
A very useful Russian word is the word for "very". You can include it into many phrases. It sometimes replaces the word "really" also. For example:
Очень - very. (or really)
Я очень люблю спорт - I really love sport.
Я очень люблю Москву - I really love Moscow.
Question Words
You may also find these question words useful during your travels around Russia.
Где? - Where?
Кто? - Who?
Что? - What?
Как? - How?
Почему? - Why?
If you would like to learn more then refer to the question words page in the grammar section.
Video
Use this video to help you learn the Russian verb "to love". Try saying each phrase after you hear it. Then try reading the words with the sounds off. Take me to YouTube.
Conclusion
You should now know the basics for forming simple Russian sentences. In this lesson we learnt expressions that are useful for talking about things that you like. There is quite a bit of vocabulary in this lesson, so you may wish to review some of it again later. In particular, if you can memorise the verbs you will find it easier to express yourself in Russian.