30 places in town
Sorted A to Я like a street directory. Each entry gives the word, its pronunciation, and the full “where” phrase with the right preposition. Tap to hear both.
в or на? The rule of thumb
There is no rule that covers every word, but three patterns get you most of the way. The same preposition is used for going there (with the accusative, the case for direction) and for being there (with the prepositional, the case for location).
| Where to? (accusative) | Where? (prepositional) | Where from? (genitive) |
|---|---|---|
в pairs with из for “from”; на pairs with с. So в шко́лу → из шко́лы, but на по́чту → с по́чты.
Writing a Russian address
Russian addresses run from the largest unit to the smallest: city, street, building, flat. Most people live in flats, so the flat number is part of almost every address. Each part has a standard abbreviation.
Around town
Moving around a place without one destination uses по with the dative: гуля́ть по го́роду, to walk around the city. Six sentences for describing your city and moving through it.
City signs
Signs you will see on doors, shops and streets. They are written in capitals, without stress marks.