Thank you and hello in RussianWith pronunciation, and the replies you'll hear back
Russian looks harder than it sounds, and the alphabet takes an evening to decode. The bigger adjustment for travellers is social: politeness here lives in the words you choose, not in the smile you put on top of them. Here are 18 phrases people actually use in Russia and much of Central Asia, in the order worth learning them. The replies you will hear back are included too.
"Thank you" in Russian
Спасибо
spah-SEE-bah
spasibo
The final o is unstressed, so it sounds like ah, not oh.
Thank you
Спасибо
spah-SEE-bah
spasibo
Hello (formal)
Здравствуйте
ZDRAHST-vooy-tyeh
zdravstvuyte
The first в is silent. Привет ("pree-VYET") is for friends only.
Excuse me / sorry
Извините
eez-vee-NEE-tyeh
izvinite
Works for apologies and for stopping a stranger to ask something.
Yes / No
Да / Нет
dah / nyet
da / net
Please / you're welcome
Пожалуйста
pah-ZHAH-luh-stah
pozhaluysta
Most people compress it to "pah-ZHAHL-stah". Do the same and you'll sound normal.
The respelling is an approximation. Stress does more work in Russian than in almost any language you'll have met, because unstressed o collapses into an a sound. That is why молоко (milk) is said "mah-lah-KOH" and хорошо is "khah-rah-SHOH", and it means the CAPS in these respellings are not a suggestion, they are the difference between being understood and not. Two more sounds have no English match: the soft consonants written with ye and yu here, and ы, which is roughly an i said with your tongue pulled back. Спасибо and Здравствуйте still come out fine, so start with those.
Five phrases is genuinely enough for Russian
You do not need to work through a phrasebook before you go. Almost everything a traveller says falls into these five shapes, and they are listed under "Start with these five" above.
- Thank you … The one you will use most. If you learn a single word, make it this one.
- Hello … Said the moment you walk into a shop. Whether you say it changes how you are treated.
- Excuse me … Some languages split calling someone over and apologising into different words. Check the list above.
- How much is it? … Needed for every purchase and every meal. If you miss the number, ask them to show it.
- I don't understand … Without this you end up nodding along and walking off in the wrong direction.
Getting these five automatic beats memorising twenty. Twenty phrases you have to search your memory for are worth nothing at the moment you need them.
Пожалуйста is please, you're welcome and here you go
Пожалуйста covers three moments that English splits apart. It is please when you ask for something, you're welcome when someone thanks you, and it is what a cashier says while handing back your change. That makes it the other half of every exchange you'll have, so learn it alongside Спасибо rather than after it. It also carries most of the politeness load, because Russian does not lean on English-style padding like "could I possibly get": the normal polite request is just the noun plus пожалуйста, as in "Кофе, пожалуйста". Related, and worth knowing before you take it personally: a flat, unsmiling delivery from staff is the professional register here, not coldness aimed at you.
The hard part is not speaking, it is understanding the reply
Almost every phrasebook only covers what you say. What actually stops people is the second after they finish talking, when the other person answers. How many of you. For here or to go. Card or cash. Go quiet and the exchange dies. Nod along and you get the wrong thing.
The good news is that the replies are a small, predictable set. Choose "You hear" in the list above and you will see only the ones that actually come back at you in Russia and much of Central Asia. Reading them once before you go is most of the work.
If you still cannot catch it, ask them to write it down. Numbers and place names are far easier to read than to hear.
Say it clearly rather than say it perfectly
Stress does more work in Russian than in almost any language you'll have met, because unstressed o collapses into an a sound. That is why молоко (milk) is said "mah-lah-KOH" and хорошо is "khah-rah-SHOH", and it means the CAPS in these respellings are not a suggestion, they are the difference between being understood and not. Two more sounds have no English match: the soft consonants written with ye and yu here, and ы, which is roughly an i said with your tongue pulled back. Спасибо and Здравствуйте still come out fine, so start with those.
The usual failure is not a wrong vowel, it is going quiet because you are unsure. Keep it short, say it at normal volume, and finish the phrase in one breath. Everyone can tell you are a visitor attempting Russian, and if it does not land they will simply ask again. Copy the written form to your phone so you have something to show when speaking does not work.
Other languages
FAQ
Q.How do you say thank you in Russian?
Спасибо, pronounced roughly spah-SEE-bah. The final o is unstressed, so it sounds like ah, not oh. If you learn one word before you travel, make it this one. It works at the till, when someone gives you directions, and when someone gives up a seat.
Q.Will the pronunciation guide alone get me understood?
Stress does more work in Russian than in almost any language you'll have met, because unstressed o collapses into an a sound. That is why молоко (milk) is said "mah-lah-KOH" and хорошо is "khah-rah-SHOH", and it means the CAPS in these respellings are not a suggestion, they are the difference between being understood and not. Two more sounds have no English match: the soft consonants written with ye and yu here, and ы, which is roughly an i said with your tongue pulled back. Спасибо and Здравствуйте still come out fine, so start with those.
Q.How much should I learn before I go?
Five phrases. Thank you, hello, excuse me, how much is it, and I don't understand. That covers nearly every situation a traveller hits. Getting those five automatic matters far more than adding a sixth, because at the moment you need them there is no time to think.
Q.Why bother when I have a translation app?
For getting something done, the app wins. People still learn a few words because it changes how they are treated. In a 2025 Preply survey of 1,526 US adults, 47 percent of those who used the local language said locals treated them better, 80 percent said learning phrases before a trip is important, and 58 percent actually did it. A greeting is less about transferring information and more about signalling that you made an effort.
Q.I can ask the question, but I cannot understand the answer.
That is the most common way this goes wrong, and it is why this page includes the other side. Choose "You hear" in the list above to see only what gets said back to you in Russia and much of Central Asia. There are not many variations: how many of you, eat in or take away, card or cash. Reading them once removes most of the surprise.
Q.Does this work offline?
Yes. Everything runs in the browser, with no account and nothing sent to a server. Open it once before you fly and it will usually still be there on the plane or in a dead zone. You can copy any phrase and show the screen when speaking does not work.
Reading a phrase is not the same as saying it
You can recognise every phrase on this page and still freeze at the counter, because there is no time to think. Inko lets you say Russian out loud to an AI for 60 seconds a day, and afterwards it shows you what you could have said instead. A week before you fly is enough to make a difference.