Grammar Reference

Cyrillic alphabet: 33 letters, printed vs cursive, vowels and consonants

Can read and write the Cyrillic alphabet and identify Russian letters

Pronunciation rules, stress, vowel reduction (о→а), voiced/voiceless consonant pairing

Can apply Russian stress and vowel reduction rules when reading aloud

Hard/soft consonant pairs, ь (soft sign), effect on pronunciation

Can distinguish and produce hard and soft consonants in Russian

Hard sign (ъ), soft sign (ь), ы sound, щ and ч sounds

Can use soft sign and hard sign correctly and pronounce Ы, Щ, Ч sounds

Bryzgunova's IK system: ИК-1 statements, ИК-2 wh-questions/commands, ИК-3 yes/no questions, ИК-4 polite contrast, ИК-5/6/7 evaluation

I can hear and produce the seven IK contours, especially the question-making ИК-3.

Meaning by stress placement: Я ЗАВТРА еду в Москву vs Я завтра еду в МОСКВУ; scope of даже/только; written-stress workarounds

I can move logical stress to recolor a sentence and anchor только/даже scope.

Personal pronouns: я, ты, он/она/оно, мы, вы, они

Can use personal pronouns to refer to self and others, and choose appropriate ты/Вы register

Это = this is, Вот = here is, demonstrative constructions

Can identify objects using это/вот and form questions with что это

Question words: кто, что, где, когда, как, почему, сколько, какой

Can ask basic questions using кто, что, где, когда, как, сколько

Possessive pronouns: мой/моя/моё, твой, его/её/их, наш/ваш

Can understand and apply притяжательные местоимения in basic communication

Demonstrative pronouns: этот/эта/это/эти, тот/та/то/те

Can understand and apply указательные местоимения in basic communication

The full personal pronoun paradigm (меня, мне, мной; его/него after prepositions) across all six cases

I can use every personal pronoun form across the six cases, including the н- forms.

The famous -то/-нибудь split: known-but-unnamed vs any-at-all, with кто/что/где/когда/какой

I can choose between -то, -нибудь and кое- by knownness, sentence type and time.

The ни-series with obligatory double negation (никто не пришёл), case forms, and ни у кого split prepositions

I can build multiple-negation sentences and split ни-pronouns around prepositions.

свой points to the subject: мой/его vs свой, the meaning-changing contrast (любит свою/его жену), and where свой is banned

I can use свой correctly whenever the owner is the subject and avoid it in subjects.

этот vs тот, такой for quality, тот же (самый) for identity, то, что... clause glue

I can distinguish same-type from same-token and glue clauses with то, что.

The four-series system: -то, -нибудь, -либо (bookish any), кое- (known to speaker); некто/нечто and некого/нечего

I command all four indefinite series plus некого/нечего predicatives.

Omission of 'to be' in present tense (Я студент, not Я есть студент)

Can form present-tense sentences without 'to be' and use the dash convention

First conjugation: -ать/-ять verbs (читать, работать, знать)

Can understand and apply глаголы i спряжения in basic communication

Second conjugation: -ить verbs (говорить, учить, любить)

Can understand and apply глаголы ii спряжения in basic communication

Irregular verbs: хотеть, есть, пить — mixed conjugation

Can understand and apply неправильные глаголы: хотеть, есть, пить in basic communication

жить conjugation: живу, живёшь (mixed pattern)

Can understand and apply глагол «жить» in basic communication

Unidirectional vs multidirectional motion verbs (basic)

Can understand and apply глаголы движения: идти/ходить in basic communication

Reflexive verbs: учиться, заниматься, -ся/-сь endings

Can understand and apply возвратные глаголы (-ся) in basic communication

Modal verbs мочь (can) and хотеть (want) + infinitive

Can understand and apply глагол «мочь» и «хотеть» in basic communication

Past tense: -л/-ла/-ло/-ли (gender-based!)

Can understand and apply прошедшее время in basic communication

Imperfective future: буду + infinitive

Can understand and apply будущее время (несовершенный вид) in basic communication

Perfective future: conjugated perfective verb (прочитаю)

Can understand and apply будущее время (совершенный вид) in basic communication

Aspect basics: imperfective vs perfective (читать/прочитать)

Can understand and apply вид глагола: введение in basic communication

Imperative mood: читай/читайте, говори/говорите

Can understand and apply императив in basic communication

Imperfective/perfective pairs (делать/сделать, писать/написать, покупать/купить): process vs result, pair formation types

I can choose the right aspect member for process, repetition and results.

Spatial prefixes on motion verbs: при-/у-/в-/вы-/пере-/под-/от- with идти and ехать, and the aspect twist

I can express arriving, leaving, entering and crossing with prefixed motion pairs.

The vehicle motion set: ехать/ездить, везти/возить, нести/носить, лететь/летать — one-way vs multidirectional

I can pick the right motion verb by direction, habit and vehicle, including carry/lead pairs.

The бы system: past tense + бы for wishes, polite requests and unreal conditions with если бы

I can express wishes, polite requests and unreal conditions with the бы system.

Aspect choice in commands: perfective requests (Купи!), imperfective prohibitions (Не покупай!) and invitations (Заходите!)

I can pick the right aspect for requests, prohibitions, warnings and warm invitations.

The modal system without modal verbs: должен agrees, надо/можно/нельзя take dative, and нельзя + aspect changes meaning

I can express obligation, permission and prohibition with должен/надо/можно/нельзя including the aspect trick.

Which case each frequent verb demands: звонить кому, ждать кого/чего, гордиться кем, благодарить кого

I know the case government of the 20 most frequent Russian verbs.

Active present (-ущ/-ющ, -ащ/-ящ) and past (-вш-) participles: recognition and replacing который clauses

I can recognize active participles and convert them to and from который clauses.

Gerunds: imperfective -я (читая) for simultaneous action, perfective -в (прочитав) for prior action; same-subject rule

I can compress same-subject actions with -я and -в gerunds without dangling them.

Two passives: imperfective -ся (дом строится) and perfective short participle (дом построен); agent in instrumental

I can build process and result passives and name the agent in the instrumental.

Motion verbs beyond motion: время идёт, дождь идёт, костюм идёт, часы идут вперёд, вести себя, носить имя

I can use motion verbs in their figurative senses with the fixed forms they demand.

Negation pulls toward the imperfective: не читал (never) vs не прочитал (didn't finish); не надо + НСВ

I can pick the aspect under negation to distinguish never-did from didn't-complete.

All four participles: active present/past, passive present (-емый/-имый) and past (-нный/-тый); building and choosing

I can build and deploy all four participle types in written Russian.

Beyond the basics: adverbialized gerunds (молча, сидя, не спеша), negated gerunds (не дожидаясь), -в vs -вши, fixed idioms

I can handle adverbialized, negated and idiomatic gerunds with correct punctuation.

The position system: ставить/стоять (vertical), класть/лежать (horizontal), вешать/висеть (hanging); положить suppletion

I can choose position verbs by orientation and use the класть/положить suppletive pair.

Imperfective for bare facts: Ты читал «Анну Каренину»? (experience), annulled results (приходил = came and left), and two-way actions

I can use the general-factual imperfective for experience and annulled results.

Government that trips everyone: скучать по вам/по вас, согласно приказу (dat.), благодаря/вопреки + dat., по приезде

I can apply the normative government in the constructions natives get wrong.

Five -ся jobs: true reflexive (умываться), reciprocal (обниматься), passive (строится), middle (дверь открывается), emotional (радоваться)

I can classify -ся verbs by function and respect their case restrictions.

Negation with не before verbs, double negation required

Can negate sentences and use double negation correctly

Word order: SVO default, flexible for emphasis, questions by intonation

Can understand and apply порядок слов in basic communication

Basic conjunctions: и, а, но, или, потому что, что

Can understand and apply союзы: и, а, но, или, потому что, что in basic communication

Possession: У меня есть + nominative (not 'я имею')

Can understand and apply конструкция «у меня есть» in basic communication

Need: dative + нужно/надо + infinitive

Can understand and apply конструкция «мне нужно/надо» in basic communication

Relative clauses: который agrees in gender/number with the head noun, case by clause role; obligatory commas

I can describe people and things with который clauses in the right gender, number and case.

Subjectless sentences: мне холодно, на улице темно, пора идти, хочется спать - dative experiencer + predicative adverb

I can express states and necessity with subjectless dative constructions.

чтобы + infinitive (same subject) vs чтобы + past (different subjects): цель and хочу, чтобы ты...

I can express purpose and wishes with чтобы, switching infinitive/past by subject identity.

Reported speech without backshift: что for statements, чтобы for commands, ли for yes/no questions

I can report statements, commands and questions with что/чтобы/ли and no tense shift.

если + future for real conditions (Russian uses future where English bans it), если бы + past for unreal; раз and в случае

I can build real conditions with double future and unreal ones with double бы.

Free word order with iron logic: new information goes last; Мама дома vs Дома мама answer different questions

I can order words by information structure so the sentence answers the intended question.

Discourse connectors for coherent paragraphs: cause (поэтому, из-за этого), contrast (однако, зато), addition (кроме того, к тому же), sequence (сначала, затем, наконец)

I can chain sentences into coherent paragraphs with cause, contrast and sequence connectors.

Parenthetical words with mandatory commas: конечно, кажется, по-моему, к сожалению, во-первых; кажется vs кажется-predicate

I can mark parentheticals with commas and tell them from look-alike predicates.

The subordinate clause inventory: потому что/так как (cause), хотя (concession), когда/пока/как только (time), чтобы (purpose), если (condition)

I can attach cause, concession, time and purpose clauses with the right conjunctions.

Russian quotation mechanics: «ёлочки», the dash dialogue format, и speech-verb frames (- Привет, - сказала она.)

I can punctuate quotations and dash dialogues the Russian way.

Emphatic devices: fronting (Хлеба купи!), именно/как раз focus, это-clefts (Это он виноват), и-emphasis

I can highlight any element with fronting, именно, это-clefts and emphatic и.

The full impersonal zoo: нет/не было/не будет, везёт/повезло, знобит/тошнит, пахнет чем, ветром сорвало крышу

I can produce the major impersonal types including the elemental instrumental.

Comma rules for participial clauses (after the noun = commas; before = none) and gerund phrases (always), plus exceptions

I can punctuate participial and gerund phrases by position, knowing the exceptions.

Paired constructions: чем...тем + comparatives, не только...но и, как...так и, настолько...насколько

I can build proportional and paired-conjunction sentences with correct comparatives.

How spoken Russian really works: ellipsis (Ты куда? - Я в аптеку), nominative themes, давай-constructions, echo answers

I can speak with natural ellipsis, давай-constructions and echo answers.

Tricky agreement: большинство пришло/пришли, пять человек пришло/пришли, врач пришла, кто пришёл, ни один не

I can choose predicate agreement with quantified, collective and profession subjects.

Universal concession: вопрос-слово + бы ни + past (что бы ни случилось, как бы ни старался), сколько ни проси

I can build whatever/however/wherever concessions with бы ни patterns.

Where the comma goes in несмотря на то(,) что, потому(,) что, для того(,) чтобы - and what shifts it

I can place the single comma in compound conjunctions and know what forces the split.

The colon/dash logic: colon for cause/explanation (= потому что, а именно), dash for result/contrast/time (= поэтому, а, когда)

I can choose colon or dash in asyndetic sentences by the implied conjunction.

Architecture of long sentences: stacked subordination, союз meets союз (что, если), comma traffic rules, when to split

I can build and punctuate three-level sentences and know when to break them up.

Cardinal numbers 0-100 and number agreement patterns

Can use numbers 0-100 and apply number-noun agreement

Telling time: hours and minutes in Russian

Can understand and apply время: который час? in basic communication

Ordinal numbers: первый-десятый

Can understand and apply порядковые числительные in basic communication

Dates, age expressions (Мне 20 лет — dative + genitive!)

Can understand and apply дата и возраст in basic communication

Saying years (в тысяча девятьсот..., в две тысячи...), full dates in the genitive, and centuries

I can state years, full dates and centuries with correct ordinal and genitive forms.

Quantity words with the genitive: много времени, мало денег, несколько вопросов, сколько стоит, чашка чая

I can quantify with много/мало/несколько and measure words plus the right genitive.

Declining numerals: с двумя друзьями, около трёх часов, к пяти годам; compound basics

I can decline numerals through the cases together with their nouns.

двое/трое/четверо: with male persons, children, pluralia tantum (двое суток) - and where they are banned

I can use двое/трое with the right noun classes and avoid them with female nouns.

The hard numerals: пятьюстами, девятисот, полтора/полутора, оба/обе, дробные; spoken workarounds

I can decline complex numerals including сотни, полтора and оба/обе in all cases.

3 genders: masculine, feminine, neuter — recognition by word endings

Can determine the grammatical gender of Russian nouns by their ending

Plural formation: -ы/-и, -а/-я, irregulars

Can form plural nouns correctly including common irregulars

Nominative case: subject, predicate noun

Can identify and use nominative case for subjects and predicate nouns

Accusative: direct object, animate vs inanimate distinction

Can use accusative for direct objects with animate/inanimate distinction

Prepositional case: в/на + location

Can express location using в/на + prepositional case

Genitive basics: negation, possession, quantity

Can understand and apply родительный падеж (2): основы in basic communication

Genitive with numbers: 2-4 gen.sg, 5+ gen.pl

Can understand and apply родительный падеж: числа in basic communication

Dative case: indirect object, age, мне нравится

Can understand and apply дательный падеж (3) in basic communication

Instrumental: с (with), profession (работать врачом)

Can understand and apply творительный падеж (5) in basic communication

All 6 cases overview with question words

Can understand and apply обзор падежей in basic communication

The full genitive singular: endings by gender, the без/у/от/из/для preposition set, possession and absence (нет)

I can express possession, absence and origin with full genitive singular forms.

The hardest Russian plural: -ов/-ев/-ей and zero endings (книг, мест), fleeting vowels, and use after numbers 5+

I can form all three genitive plural models and use them after numbers and quantity words.

The animacy split: animate accusative = genitive (вижу брата), inanimate = nominative (вижу стол), singular and plural

I can mark direct objects correctly by animacy in both numbers.

The plural case overview: -ам/-ами/-ах are gender-blind, the genitive plural is the only hard spot

I can decline nouns in all plural cases using the gender-blind endings.

не вижу разницы vs не вижу эту разницу: when negation takes genitive vs accusative - abstractness, definiteness, idioms

I can choose genitive or accusative under negation by abstractness and definiteness.

Animacy puzzles: вижу куклу/робота/покойника, есть устриц, ферзя бить, играть в казаков-разбойников

I can resolve the animacy edge cases of dolls, queens, oysters and the dearly departed.

Which surnames decline: с Пушкиным but Дарвином, о Шевченко (frozen), у Марии Куинджи, female -ук/-юк frozen

I can decline or freeze any surname by its type, origin and bearer's gender.

Adjective agreement in gender/number: новый/новая/новое/новые

Can understand and apply прилагательные: согласование in basic communication

Short adjectives: рад/рада, готов/готова, занят/занята

Can understand and apply краткие прилагательные in basic communication

Comparatives with -ее/-е (быстрее, дороже), consonant alternations, чем vs genitive comparison, and больше/меньше

I can compare with both the чем and the genitive patterns, including the irregular set.

Superlatives with самый + adjective, the -ейш-/-айш- bookish forms, and лучший/худший

I can form superlatives with самый, the bookish suffixes and быстрее всех.

Short adjectives as predicates: рад, готов, должен, болен, похож; full vs short meaning splits (больной/болен)

I can use short adjectives as predicates and feel the full/short meaning splits.

Days, months, seasons + prepositions

Can understand and apply дни недели, месяцы, времена года in basic communication

Time expressions: вчера, сегодня, завтра, потом, сейчас

Can understand and apply выражения времени in basic communication

TORFL exam phrases, instruction vocabulary, classroom language

Can understand and apply полезные выражения для трки in basic communication

Location prepositions: в, на, у, около, рядом с, между, за, под, над

Can understand and apply предлоги места in basic communication

Direction prepositions: в/на + acc (куда), из/с + gen (откуда)

Can understand and apply предлоги направления in basic communication

The time-preposition toolkit: через час, год назад, по понедельникам, с двух до пяти, на неделю/за неделю

I can place events in time with через/назад/по/с-до and distinguish на vs за periods.

The three-way space system: в/на + acc. (куда), в/на + prep. (где), из/с + gen. (откуда); the в↔из, на↔с pairings

I can navigate куда/где/откуда with the consistent в-из, на-с and к-у-от pairings.

Frequency adverbs: всегда, часто, иногда, редко, никогда

Can understand and apply наречия частотности in basic communication

Place/manner adverbs: здесь, там, хорошо, быстро, медленно

Can understand and apply наречия места и образа действия in basic communication

Adverb comparison: быстрее, лучше, раньше; как можно + comparative; всё + comparative for trends

I can compare adverbs and use как можно and всё + comparative patterns.

The politeness toolkit: Вы не могли бы..., Можно мне..., Давай(те)..., Не хотите ли..., будьте добры

I can make requests, ask permission and propose plans at the right politeness level.

Confusable pairs natives also mix: одеть/надеть, оплатить/заплатить, представить/предоставить, эффектный/эффективный

I can keep the classic paronym pairs apart, including their case patterns.

Frozen grammar inside idioms: спустя рукава, сломя голову, ничтоже сумняшеся, бить баклуши - old forms preserved like flies in amber

I can use relic-grammar idioms intact and explain the fossils inside them.

Errors only natives make: ихний, ложить, евоный, звОнит, более лучше, оплатить за - the social map of stigma, bridge to a native track

I can recognize native-speaker errors, explain their system logic and read their social signal.

Verbal nouns: -ние/-тие (чтение, развитие), -ка (стирка), zero-suffix (выход); keeping the verb's government

I can derive verbal nouns and inherit the verb's case government correctly.

The diminutive engine: -ик/-чик, -ок, -очка/-ечка, -еньк-; pragmatics from tenderness to shop talk (чек и пакетик)

I can form diminutives and deploy them for tenderness, softening and irony.

What prefixes mean beyond motion: за- (begin/drop by), пере- (re-/over), до- (finish/reach), раз- (apart), с- (together)

I can decode and build prefixed verbs using the core prefix meanings.

Why день/дня, сон/сна, друг/друзья, рука/ручка: yers, palatalizations and the system behind the 'exceptions'

I can explain and predict stem alternations through their historical sources.

Word-play grammar: nonce words (Mayakovsky's громадьё), productive patterns for jokes, declining brand names and memes

I can parse and produce nonce words riding productive morphological patterns.

First contact with flavor particles: же (reminder/contrast), ведь (shared knowledge), ли (question), даже (even), и (even/too)

I can season speech with же, ведь, ли and даже in their proper slots.

не negates, ни intensifies/generalizes: ни души, ни разу, как ни старался, что бы ни случилось; не раз vs ни разу

I can separate negating не from intensifying-generalizing ни in all key patterns.

The advanced particle set: разве/неужели (incredulous questions), -ка (softened commands), ну (hesitation/прodding), уж (concession)

I can deploy разве, неужели, -ка, ну and уж with their exact attitudes.

Hearsay particles: мол/дескать (someone else's words), якобы (doubted claim), -де (folksy); distancing without quoting

I can relay others' words with мол/дескать/якобы at the right trust level.

When participle stacks help and when they strangle prose: nesting limits, который-alternation, de-bureaucratizing

I can dose participle chains and rewrite bureaucratic stacks into readable prose.

The bookish-archaic register: дабы (purpose), ибо (cause), коль скоро, нежели, толи for irony and high style

I can read bookish conjunctions and deploy them for high style or irony.

Spotting and unwinding bureaucratese: nominalization chains (осуществление улучшения), является + noun, denominal prepositions

I can detect bureaucratese and rewrite it into plain Russian.

Stylistic aspect: iteratives (хаживал, говаривал), бывало + future/present, narrative perfective (как вскочит!), historic present

I can wield iteratives, бывало and the narrative perfective for storytelling color.

Reading and writing official Russian: настоящим уведомляем, в лице директора, надлежащий, вышеуказанный; when it's required vs parody

I can read official documents fluently and draft a standard заявление.

Where the codified norm and live usage diverge: звонИт, кофе gender, договОры/договорА, в Подмосковье vs на даче culture wars

I know where norm and usage split and can pick the right form per register.

Reading verse grammar: inversions (звезда полей), genitive metaphors, ellipsis, апострофа, syntactic parallelism from folklore to rock

I can parse verse syntax and hear what each inversion and ellipsis does.

The archaic layer in modern use: сей (до сих пор, сию минуту), оный, иже, очи/уста/чело, vocative remnants (Боже, Господи)

I can recognize archaic forms, their idiom hideouts and their ironic potential.

One message, five registers: official, academic, journalistic, colloquial, intimate - switching without seams

I can recast one message across five registers and switch without seams.

Live battlegrounds: feminitives (авторка, врачиня), anglicisms vs purism, в/на Украине politics, ё obligatory or optional

I can navigate the live normative battles and read the social meaning of each choice.

The two hardest spelling systems: жареный/жаренный, кованый, не with participles and adjectives, недо- vs не до-

I can apply the н/нн and не-spelling systems including their exception islands.