Thread: "ты" vs. "вы" and "sh" vs. "ch"

Originally Posted by genuinefarmgirl

When put together, they translate "you're" (ты вы or even вы ты)...is that right? Does is not matter which one comes first?

No! Where did you learn it? Neither "ты вы" nor "вы ты" combination is possible. They make absolutely no sense.

Originally Posted by genuinefarmgirl

Keeping the "ч" and the "т" together without an "ы" sneaking in between has been really tough and I don't notice it like my Russian friends do...which makes it harder for me to correct it.

As other people noted, this word has an irregular pronunciation, so "ш" instead of "ч" is pronounced (although it is spelt "что"). However, it does not mean pronouncing "что" is impossible. We do have some other words with "чт" combination, where "ч" is "ч" and "т" is "т": чтить (verb, to honour, to revere), я чту (I honour), ты чтишь (you honour), он/она чтит (he/she honours), мы чтим (we honour), вы чтите (you honour), они чтут (they honour). Also "почта" (post, post-office, mail), "мачта" (mast, tower), "почти" (almost), "мечта" (dream) and many others.

BTW, what is your native language? I doubt if you can really pronounce "ы" between "ч" and "т" Quite a few languages have anything similar to our "ы".

Originally Posted by genuinefarmgirl

but when I look up "што"...it is the word "into"

I do not understand this logic. How did you come to this conclusion? There is absolutely no relation to the English "into".

I really appreciate the info!
The "ты вы" and "вы ты" came from the translation site I was using...I guess this one isn't accurate, either. I long ago left Google translate, but haven't been able to find anything that is much better. Is there a website you'd recommend that has accurate translations?
My native language is English. I really have been working hard on learning Russian, but have had questions like this...and am really glad I finally found a place where I can get some answers!
The "што"...again, same translation site. I'm a little scared now, that I was trusting it...

Is there a book or language course that you'd recommend? I can't really afford getting Rosetta Stone right now, and tried the free Pimsleur (first course), but didn't like it very well. I want to become fluent in Russian, not just learn the "tourist" vocabulary that seems to be taught in so many books etc.

Originally Posted by genuinefarmgirl

I really appreciate the info!
Is there a book or language course that you'd recommend? I can't really afford getting Rosetta Stone right now, and tried the free Pimsleur (first course), but didn't like it very well. I want to become fluent in Russian, not just learn the "tourist" vocabulary that seems to be taught in so many books etc.

If you wanna get fluent with any language, the first step would be to learn how the language "works".
Start with grammar and vocabulary. Learn how to deal with verbs, nouns, adjectives. Try to work with both offline and online sources (including these forums). There're plenty of useful sources for Russian and Engl. on the web.

I would try to use translators for words and phrases only. Translating a whole sentence can be a questionable experience (since they fail to be accurate...).

In other words : Try to start with a structure.

Originally Posted by genuinefarmgirl

The "ты вы" and "вы ты" came from the translation site I was using...
The "што"...again, same translation site. I'm a little scared now, that I was trusting it...

I agree it is not a good idea to learn a language using translation sites. You may need a good dictionary. And there are some good on-line ones. But not a phrase translator.

However, I did check the link you provided. And I could not reproduce the case. Probably, you misunderstood something.

If I select "Russian" to "English" and then put "ты вы" or "вы ты" to the input box, the translation shows "? ?". The same thing happens if I try putting "што" there (because the right spelling is "что").

Originally Posted by Боб Уайтман

If I select "Russian" to "English" and then put "ты вы" or "вы ты" to the input box, the translation shows "? ?". The same thing happens if I try putting "што" there (because the right spelling is "что").

How strange! I tried it again this morning, and it still did the same thing. I typed in the Russian word "што" and it translated INTO. I tried the others, too... same way, same results. I just know not to use that one again. I thank you for taking the time to check into it.