Gramática inglesa
Gramática francesa

Russian Word Stress

Key Feature:

In Russian, word stress (ударение) is unpredictable and mobile—it can fall on any syllable and often shifts between different forms of the same word (declension/conjugation), sometimes even changing vowel pronunciation.
3 Essential Rules:

  • No Fixed Position
    • Compare:
      • му́ка (flour) vs. мука́ (torment)
      • пи́сьмо (letter, nom.) → письма́ (genitive)
  • Impact on Pronunciation
    • Unstressed vowels weaken:
      • о → sounds like [a] (молоко́ → [məlaˈko])
      • е/я → sound like [и] (де́ревня → [ˈdʲerʲivnʲə])
  • Common Exceptions
    • -ить verbs often stress the ending in infinitive (говори́ть) but not always (стро́ить).
    • Loanwords sometimes keep original stress (кафе́).

Why It Matters?

  • Wrong stress can change meaning:
    • за́мок (castle) vs. замо́к (lock)
  • Affects grammar:
    • окно́ (nom. sg.) → о́кна (nom. pl.)

Learning Tips:

  • Listen to natives (movies, podcasts).
  • Use dictionaries/apps with marked stress (e.g., "Pronounce" feature).
  • Memorize minimal pairs (e.g., я́корь/якоря́).

Remember: "In Russian, stress is as vital as the letters themselves—it’s part of the word’s DNA!"
(Audio examples available in learning apps like PROMT.One.)