Results 1 to 7 of 7

Thread: Distinguishing Between Letters

  1. #1
    Увлечённый спикер Missionary's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Australia
    Posts
    64
    Rep Power
    7

    Distinguishing Between Letters

    Hello forums,
    I know all of the Russian alphabet, but I'm stuck on some of the letters' pronunciation. Can you please help me distinguish between И and Й, and Ш and Щ? Thank you.

  2. #2
    Властелин Medved's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    Wonderland of Russia
    Posts
    1,201
    Rep Power
    26
    Й is like Y as in Yes or Toy
    И is like EE as in bee

    as for Ш vs Щ you have to go much further into phonetics to learn the difference.
    The thing is that your SH as in SHore is neither Ш nor Щ; it's like in between them and you have to learn the correct articulation of the Russian sounds to feel the difference.
    Another month ends. All targets met. All systems working. All customers satisfied. All staff eagerly enthusiastic. All pigs fed and ready to fly.

  3. #3
    Увлечённый спикер Missionary's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Australia
    Posts
    64
    Rep Power
    7
    Quote Originally Posted by Medved View Post
    Й is like Y as in Yes or Toy
    И is like EE as in bee

    as for Ш vs Щ you have to go much further into phonetics to learn the difference.
    The thing is that your SH as in SHore is neither Ш nor Щ; it's like in between them and you have to learn the correct articulation of the Russian sounds to feel the difference.
    Just to clarify, the main difference between И and Й is that Й is held shorter than И, right? It is a little confusing, but I guess practice makes perfect.

  4. #4
    Почтенный гражданин Soft sign's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Location
    г. Новосибирск
    Posts
    611
    Rep Power
    29
    Quote Originally Posted by Missionary View Post
    the main difference between И and Й is that Й is held shorter than И, right?
    [й] is a consonant. It doesn’t form a syllable. [и] is a vowel, and it forms a syllable.
    [й] creates more noise than [и] does when being pronounced.

    Quote Originally Posted by Missionary View Post
    Can you please help me distinguish between И and Й, and Ш and Щ?
    Have you already get accustomed with palatalization (so called ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ consonants) and with the letter ‘ь’ (‘soft sign’)? Can you hear the difference in the pairs ‘п’—‘пь’, ‘м’—‘мь’, ‘с’—‘сь’ etc.?
    If so, you can assume that ‘щ’ is ‘шь’.
    Please correct my English

  5. #5
    Увлечённый спикер Missionary's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Australia
    Posts
    64
    Rep Power
    7
    Quote Originally Posted by Soft sign View Post
    [й] is a consonant. It doesn’t form a syllable. [и] is a vowel, and it forms a syllable.
    [й] creates more noise than [и] does when being pronounced.


    Have you already get accustomed with palatalization (so called ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ consonants) and with the letter ‘ь’ (‘soft sign’)? Can you hear the difference in the pairs ‘п’—‘пь’, ‘м’—‘мь’, ‘с’—‘сь’ etc.?
    If so, you can assume that ‘щ’ is ‘шь’.
    I've learned about palatalization, and I'm practicing it right now. By the way it's got, not get. Благодарю.

  6. #6
    Почтенный гражданин Soft sign's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Location
    г. Новосибирск
    Posts
    611
    Rep Power
    29
    Quote Originally Posted by Missionary View Post
    I've learned about palatalization, and I'm practicing it right now.
    I suppose it is one of the most difficult features in Russian phonetics.

    [offtop]
    Quote Originally Posted by Missionary View Post
    By the way it's got, not get.
    Thank you for the correction. I’m trying to improve my English, and your corrections are important to me.
    [/offtop]
    Please correct my English

  7. #7
    Увлечённый спикер Missionary's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Australia
    Posts
    64
    Rep Power
    7
    Quote Originally Posted by Soft sign View Post
    I suppose it is one of the most difficult features in Russian phonetics.

    [offtop]

    Thank you for the correction. I’m trying to improve my English, and your corrections are important to me.
    [/offtop]
    Your English is already really good, keep it up!

Similar Threads

  1. two more letters, can someone translate them ?
    By Johnroman in forum Translate This!
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: January 5th, 2008, 05:00 PM
  2. Business letters
    By lisjonOK in forum Learn English - Грамматика, переводы, словарный запас
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: September 22nd, 2006, 05:58 AM
  3. The Big Letters In The Titles
    By Leof in forum General Discussion
    Replies: 24
    Last Post: September 3rd, 2006, 04:11 PM
  4. Distinguishing between handwritten 'm' and 't'
    By andrewsco in forum Grammar and Vocabulary
    Replies: 7
    Last Post: November 7th, 2005, 08:06 PM
  5. Letters
    By The Hatred in forum Pronunciation, Speech & Accent
    Replies: 13
    Last Post: August 23rd, 2005, 03:37 AM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  


Russian Lessons                           

Russian Tests and Quizzes            

Russian Vocabulary