All 33 letters in print and cursive
Each tile shows the printed capital and small letter, then the same pair written by hand. Tap a tile to hear the letter’s name. Letters marked in red look most different from print; the next section explains them.
The handwriting here is a script font close to the way Russian schoolchildren are taught. Real handwriting varies from person to person, as in English.
The ten shapes that change
Most cursive letters are a joined-up version of the print letter. These ten are not: learn them and the rest follows. The “looks like” column is what an English reader might see at first glance.
| Cursive | Looks like | How to tell | |
|---|---|---|---|
| т | т | m | Three humps, often with a bar on top. An English m never has a bar. |
| д | д | g or ∂ | Small д has a tail that loops down (like g) or curls up (like ∂). Both are д. |
| и | и | u | Two strokes joined at the bottom. Russian handwriting has no letter u, so a u-shape is always и. |
| п | п | n | An n-shape in the middle of a word is п. Russian н is written like a small H. |
| г | г | s (backwards) | Small г is a round hook. Its capital Г stays like print. |
| б | б | 6 or δ | A round belly with a curl at the top, like the number 6. |
| в | в | B or б | Small в is written like a small capital B with two loops; don’t read it as б, which curls upward. |
| л | л | n with a hook | Starts with a small hook at the bottom left. м starts the same way, with one hump more. |
| з | з | 3 | Like the digit 3 with a tail below the line. Russians often write 3 the same way. |
| ш | ш | w or ııı | Three strokes joined at the bottom, often with a line underneath to tell it from т. |
Helper marks: lines over т and under ш
In cursive, т, ш and и are all made of the same up-and-down strokes, so a word like ши́шки can turn into a row of identical waves. Many Russians add two small marks to keep them apart. They are optional and not part of spelling.
How letters join
Russian cursive joins every letter in a word, without lifting the pen where possible. Three habits make joined writing readable.
- Start л, м and я with a hookThese letters begin with a small hook at the bottom so the pen can arrive from the letter before.
- Join о from the topо connects to the next letter from its top, so the join looks like a small bridge.
- Keep capitals unjoined if you likeMany people lift the pen after a capital letter. Both ways are correct.
Read real words
Each card shows a word in handwriting. Read it, then tap to see the printed form, pronunciation, meaning and the letter that makes it tricky.