Greetings (Приветствия)

Learn how to greet people, ask “How are you?”, use polite expressions, and say goodbye in Russian.

Basic Greetings (Formal & Informal)

Russian	Pronunciation	English	Usage
Здравствуйте	ZDRAVstvuyte	Hello (formal)	Polite, to strangers, elders, groups
Привет	priVYET	Hi (informal)	Friends, family, casual
Доброе утро	DOBraye UTro	Good morning	Until ~11 AM
Добрый день	DOBryy DYEN'	Good afternoon	Until evening (~6 PM)
Добрый вечер	DOBryy VYEcher	Good evening	After 6 PM
Спокойной ночи	spaKOYnoy NOchi	Good night	Before sleep

How Are You? & Responses

Russian	Pronunciation	English
Как дела?	kak deLÁ?	How are things? (most common)
Как поживаете?	kak pazhiVÁyete?	How are you? (formal/plural)
Как жизнь?	kak zhizn'?	How's life? (casual)
Хорошо́, спаси́бо	kharashó, spaSÍba	Fine, thanks
Отлично	otLÍCHna	Excellent
Неплохо	nyePLÓkha	Not bad
Так себе	tak seBYE	So‑so
Плохо	PLÓkha	Bad

Polite Expressions & Courtesy Words

Спасибо (spaSEEba) – Thank you
Большое спасибо (bal'SHÓye spaSEEba) – Thank you very much
Пожалуйста (paZHAlusta) – Please / You're welcome
Извините (izviNÍte) – Excuse me / Sorry (formal)
Простите (praSTÍte) – Sorry / Pardon me (stronger)
Ничего страшного (nichevó stráshnava) – No problem / It's okay
Будьте добры (BÚD'te dabRÝ) – Be so kind (polite request)
Да / Нет (da / nyet) – Yes / No

Goodbye & Departure Phrases

Situation	Russian	Pronunciation	English
Common farewell	До свидания	da sviDÁniya	Goodbye (formal)
Informal	Пока	paKÁ	Bye
See you soon	До скорого	da SKÓrava	See you soon
See you tomorrow	До завтра	da ZÁVtra	See you tomorrow
All the best	Всего хорошего	vseVÓ khaRÓsheva	All the best

Practice Dialogue (At a store / casual meeting)

Анна: Здравствуйте! Как дела? (ZDRAVstvuyte! Kak deLÁ?) – Hello! How are you?

Иван: Здравствуйте! Хорошо, спасибо. А у вас? (ZDRAVstvuyte! khaRASHó, spaSÍba. A u vas?) – Hello! Fine, thanks. And you?

Анна: Отлично, спасибо. Вы не подскажете, где здесь метро? (OTlichna, spaSÍba. Vy ne podskázhete, gde zdyes' mitRO?) – Excellent, thanks. Could you tell me where the metro is?

Иван: Прямо и направо. (PRYAma i naPRÁva.) – Straight and then right.

Анна: Большое спасибо! До свидания! (bal'SHÓye spaSEEba! da sviDÁniya!) – Thank you very much! Goodbye!

Иван: Пожалуйста! Всего хорошего! (paZHAlusta! vseVÓ khaRÓsheva!) – You're welcome! All the best!

Exercise

Match the Russian greeting to its English meaning:

Здравствуйте → a) Hi (informal)
Привет → b) Goodbye (formal)
До свидания → c) Hello (formal)
Спасибо → d) Please / You're welcome
Пожалуйста → e) Thank you

Write a short dialogue using 3 greetings or polite expressions.

Show answers

1. c) Hello (formal)
2. a) Hi (informal)
3. b) Goodbye (formal)
4. e) Thank you
5. d) Please / You're welcome

Cultural note: Russians often greet with a firm handshake (men) and maintain eye contact. Close friends and family may hug or kiss on the cheek. Avoid greeting across a threshold – it's considered bad luck. When entering a shop or small office, it's polite to say "Здравствуйте" first. Also, "как дела" is often a genuine question, so be prepared to answer briefly but honestly.

Learning tip: Practice greetings with a Russian speaker or language exchange partner. Use the shadowing technique: listen to native audio (YouTube channels like "RussianPod101" or "Easy Russian") and repeat aloud. Write each greeting on a flashcard with the pronunciation. Start every day by saying "Доброе утро" to yourself.

Continue to Day 4

آج کا سبق – خلاصہ

آج آپ نے روسی میں سلام کرنے کے مختلف طریقے سیکھے: رسمی اور غیر رسمی سلام، "کیا حال ہے؟" پوچھنا اور جواب دینا، شائستہ الفاظ، اور خدا حافظ کے جملے۔ ڈائیلاگ اور مشق کے ذریعے ان کو استعمال کرنے کی مشق کریں۔

کل ہم روسی میں بنیادی اسماء (خاندان، اشیاء، مقامات) سیکھیں گے۔ مشق جاری رکھیں!

Need help?

If you have any questions about today’s lesson, feel free to contact us.

Contact support →