Phonetic transcriptions of Pimsleur level 1 lessons 1-10

Please forgive that this is in reverse order, but if you are looking for a particular word, just do a
search of the text to find it. Hope this helps some people. If you find something you believe to
be an error, I welcome all comments.

Нет, не в три часа.

nyet, niv thrrree chas-sah

No, not at 3 o'clock.

*Notice how the word не [not] is pronounced in this sentence as if it is connected to the next
word, в, to create something sounding like niv, as if it were all one word.

в три часа или в четыре?

v'thrrree chas-sah illiv chuh-tear-yee

At 3 o'clock or at 4?

*Notice how the word или [or] sounds like it is connected to the following word, в, in this
sentence, to produce something sounding like illiv, as if it were all one word.

вместе с кем вы собираетесь пообыдать?

vih-missed-yuh skyem vih subby-rrryet-tus pie-be-yeh-dut

With whom are you going to have lunch?

вы собираетесь пообыдать позже.

Vih suh-bee-rrryet-tus pie-be-yeh-dut po-zhu

Are you going to have lunch later?

Я собираюсь поестъ позже.

Yeh suh-be-rrrye-use pie-yist po-zhu

I'm going to eat later.

дывять часов

divyuht chas-sov

nine o'clock

literally: nine hours

восемь часов

Vosyem chas-sov

the y sound is pronounced very slightly

eight o'clock

Literally: eight hours

сейчас четыре часов?

see-chyes pyet chas-sov

Is it now five o'clock?

сейчас четыре часов

see-chyes pee-yet chas-sov

it's now five o'clock

literally: now five hours

пять

pee-yet

five

сейчас четыре часа

see-chyes chuh-tearrr-yeh chas-sah

it's now four o'clock

Literally: now four hours

который час?

kah-torrry chahs

meaning: what time is it?

literally: which hour?

конечно нет

con-yesh-nah nyet

certainly not

of course not

конечно

con-yesh-nah

certainly

of course

три

thrrree

three

четыре часа

chye-tearrr-yeh chas-sah

four o'clock

literally: four hours

часов

chas-sov

hours/o'clock

used for 5 o'clock and onward

часа

chas-sah

hours/o'clock

used for 2, 3, & 4 o'clock

четыре

chye-tearrr-yeh

four

в один час

vah-din chas

at one o'clock

literally: at one hour

один

ah-din

one

В котором часу?

v' kah-torrrem chas-sue

At what time/hour?

*I don't hear the speaker pronounce the

в sound at the beginning, but the narrator says it is there and means 'at'.

это хорошо.

etuh huh-rrrah-shaw

That's okay. (lit. That okay)

сo мной
sah-muh-noy

with me

вместе с вами

vmyist-tyuh svahm-me

together with you

с кем?

ssskyem

with whom?

вместе

vmyist-tyuh

together,

along with,

at the same time as,

with another person

Я хочу купить что-нибудь.

cooh-pete

I want to buy something

в гостинице

vuh gah-steen-yit-suh

in the hotel

remember, the в at the beginning, and the е at the end are what mean 'in the'

Что вы хотите делать?

dyil-uht

what do you want to do?

или

illy

or

два

duh-vah

two

ресторан интурист.

rrris-tor-rrran in-tour-reast

Intourist Restaurant

Intourist is a large state-run agency serving the needs of foreign travelers in Russia.

пиво

pee-vuh

beer

вино

vee-no

wine

не хочу.

nee ha-chu

I don't want (to).

что
schto

what

В ресторане на Тверской улице.

Tuh-ver-skoy

In the restaurant on Tverskaya Street.

(normally Тверцкая)

в ресторанe

vrrr-isterrrran-ye

in the restaurant

ресторан

rrr-isterrrran

Restaurant

пообедать

pie-be-yeah-duhht

(accentuate the breathy sound at the t)

to have lunch

С удовольствием.

sue-dah-volst-vee-yem

with pleasure.

На Пушкинской Улица

nah push-kin-skye ooh-letzuh

On Pushkin Street?
(Notice the ending of Pushkin Street changes when you say 'On Pushkin Street.' from Pushkin-
skaya)

На

On

Где у вас?

g'dia ooh vos

Where's your place?

позже

po-zhuh

later

сейчас

see-chess

now

может бутъ

mo-zhut bweet

maybe

When addressing a foreigner, Russians will sometimes use whatever title applies in the person's
native language. For example, 'Mister' or 'sir'. An American may be addressed as either Mr. or
Mrs., but it's just as common for a Russian to use the Russian titles.

Когда вы хотите есть?

When do you want to eat?

когда?
cog-dah

when?

Russians usually ask 'and you? ' when they don't know what the answer will be. When they
expect the person to agree with them. They ask 'you too?'

Я тоже хочу поестъ.

yeah toe-zhuch ha-chu pie-yeest

I too want to eat.

Я тоже

yeah toe-zhuh

me too

(I too)

у вас

ooh vos

at your place

literally: at you (polite)

у меня

ooh men-yah

at my place

literally: at me

ooh

At
Но без меня.

no biz men-yuh

Count me out.

literally 'But without me'

не хочо пить.

knee ha-chu pete

(I) don't want to drink.

пить

pete

to drink

поесть

puh-yest

to eat

кое-что

coy-schto

something

что-нибудь

schto-nee-boot

anything

Вы хотите

vih ha-t'itye

you want
Я хочу

yeh ha-chu

I want

In Russian, when you are giving a one or two word answer to a simple question, you can drop
the words for I and you. But you can keep these words when you want to give emphasis to
them.

(Я) не знаю

yeh neh zny-you

I don't know

*the я can be dropped in a

one or two word answer to a simple question

(Я) знаю

yeh zny-you

I know

*the я can be dropped in a

one or two word answer to simple question

Вы знаете Красная Площадь здесь?

(Do) you know (if) Red Square (is) here?

Вы знаете где Тверская Улица?

(Do) you know where Тверская St. (is)?

Вы знаете

vi zny-itcha

(Do) you know

Ничего

nee-chee-vo

never mind

там

tom

there, over there.

не здесь

n'izdis

not here

здесь

izdis

here

examples:

Тверская Улица здесь?

(Тверская St. is here?)

Красная Площадь

kross-naya plo-shut

red square

Площадь

plo-shut

city square

Где

guh-dia
"Where?" or "Where is..."

Скажите

skah-zheetye

Tell me

Улица

ooh-lets-suh

Street

abbreviated as: ул, which is the first 2 letters of

улица

(just like how we use the first 2 letters of the word street.)

examples:

Тверская Улица (Tverskaya St.)

Пушкин улица (Pushkin St.)

Я немного понимаю и говорю.

I understand and speak a little.*

used when saying:

a and b

understand and speak

When you want to list things without making a comparison, you use И.

*****

Notice the different placement of 'a little' versus 'only a little' in the following two examples:

Я говорю только немного.

I speak only a little.

Я немного говорю.

I speak a little.

*****

Я говорю

Yeah guhv-ar-you

I speak

Вы говорите

Voo/vih govahreetye

You speak

Да нет

of course you do.

(to contradict someone)

Вы говорите по-русски очень хорошо.

guhv-vuh-ree-tcheh

You speak (in) Russian very well.

Я немного понимаю по-английски.

I a little understand English. (I understand English a little.)

Вы понимаете, только по-русские?

You understand only (in) Russian?

Я понимаю,

не очень хорошо.

I understand not very well.

Пожалуйста

p | a | zha | a | l | oo | ooh-ih | s | t | a

Usually pronounced [pa-zhal-sta], without the уй (source: The New Penguin Russian Course)

please

you're welcome.

don't mention it.

certainly.

here you are (when handing something over)

А вы?

ah vwe

And you?

Я русский

yeh roo-skee

I am Russian. (male)

Я русская

yeah rrroo-skuh

the я at the end of this word seems to be silent.

I am Russian. (Female)

но

no

but

до свидания

d | o : s | v | ee | d | a | n | ee | ya
dahs vuh-don-yuh

bye; literally 'until meeting'

очень хорошо, спасибо

oh-chen here-rah-shaw, spy-see-buh

very well, thank you

хорошо

gutteral hah-rah-shaw

well;

okay (as in agreement)

Господин

guhs-pah-deen

Mister

Госпожа

guhs-pah-zyah

Miss, Mrs., Ms.

In business and social circles, you usually refer to a woman you don't know well as misses.

there isnt a separate word for miss, miss and mrs are the same because all these words were
banned and/or not used during communist times so some words didnt survive. but before 1917
and to a lesser extent up until 1950s the words "baryshnya" (bAhryshnia) and "sudarynya"
(soodAhrynia) were used which would be the equivalents to miss or young lady (you would still
hear them but they are used very rarely and usually by old people). in the 19th century upper
middle class and upper class would use french words monsieur for mister, mademoiselle for
miss and madame for mrs.

Как (Вы) поживаете?

cok puhz-zhia-vie-itch-chuh

literally 'how are you living?', the equivalent of 'how are you?' in English

Добрый день

doe-bree dyen

Literally 'good day'

Вы американец?
Vou uh-mare-ruh-kon-yitz

(Are) You American? (to a man)

Вы американка?

Vou uh-mare-ruh-kon-kuh

(Are) You American? (to a woman)

Я немного понимаю.

I understand a little.

(literally I a little understand)

только

toll-kuh

(once again, the o at the end is unstressed and sounds like ah)

only

немного

nee-muh-no-guh

(the unstressed o at the end of this word is pronounced as ah)

a little
извините

ease-vuh-nee-tye

excuse me

по-английски

pahn-glee-ski

in English

по-русски

pah roos-ski

in Russian

Вы понимаете

vou poon-yuh-my-itch-uh

you understand

(Я) понимаю

yeh poon-you-my-you

I understand

*я is usually omitted in short answers

Да

dah

yes

нет

nyet

(nyet) = no
Не

nye

(nye) = not