Russian can make almost any noun smaller, dearer, bigger or ruder just by changing its suffix. These forms are everywhere: in names, in shops, with children, in polite requests. Hearing what they add is a large part of understanding native speech.
A2 to C2·12 min read·Audio for every example
до́мик (DO-mik), дом (dom), до́мище (DO-mi-shche). One root, three sizes, each with its own feeling: cosy, neutral, overwhelming.
The short answer
A diminutive is a form of a word that means “small” and, very often, “dear”. Russian makes it with a suffix (an ending added after the root) that keeps the noun’s gender: masculine -ик, -ок, -чик (стол → сто́лик), feminine -ка, -очка, -енька (ма́ма → ма́мочка), neuter -ко, -це (окно́ → око́шко). The opposite, an augmentative, uses -ище (дом → до́мище). Names have their own ladder, from formal to tender to familiar.
The suffixes, by gender
Every Russian noun has a gender (masculine, feminine or neuter), usually visible from its last letter. A diminutive never changes it: a сто́лик is still masculine. Which suffix a word takes is partly habit, so learn common diminutives as words in their own right. The suffix is red throughout this page; tap any word to hear it.
The first diminutive is often just the normal everyday word (кни́жка for a paperback); the second adds tenderness, typical when talking to children. Note the swap г → ж before -к.
Masculine
Feminine
Neuter
Diminutives decline like any other noun of their type: сто́лик, сто́лика, на сто́лике; ма́мочка, ма́мочку, с ма́мочкой. A fleeting vowel often appears in the suffix: кусо́к (piece) → куска́.
Young animals: -ёнок / -онок
A special suffix names the young of an animal. In the plural it switches to -я́та / -а́та, a pattern found nowhere else. ребёнок (child) follows it in the singular, but its everyday plural is the unrelated word де́ти.
Names: from formal to tender to familiar
Every Russian first name has a ladder of forms. The full name appears in documents and, with the father’s name (patronymic), in formal address. The short form is what friends and colleagues use every day. The tender form is for family, children and partners. The -ка form is blunt and familiar: fine among close friends or siblings, rude from a stranger.
Full · documents
Short · everyday
Tender · family
Familiar · -ка
Everyday politeness: мину́точку, паке́тик
In shops, cafés and on the phone, diminutives soften a request or make an offer sound friendly. Nothing is actually small: a мину́точка can last five minutes. Using them yourself makes your Russian sound warm and natural.
Adjectives and adverbs: -еньк-, -оньк-
Adjectives and adverbs can be softened too, with -еньк- or -оньк- before the ending. The effect is “nice and …”, “a little …”, or simple affection. One of these, ма́ленький (small), is so common that its plain form ма́лый now sounds bookish.
Bigger and worse: -ище and -ишко
Two suffixes push the other way. -ище / -ища makes something huge, often with a touch of awe or disgust: an augmentative. -ишко / -ишка makes something small and shabby: a pejorative (a form that shows contempt). Both are C1–C2: you will meet them in literature and expressive speech.
Words that only look small
Some diminutives have drifted into new, everyday meanings. The “small” sense is gone; they are simply the normal word for something else. Knowing the root helps you remember them.
Check yourself
Give the form asked for. Say it out loud, then reveal the answer.