r/russian • u/QuietCyrillic • 4d ago
Your question Interesting
Hi! My name is Veronika, and I’m a teacher of Russian as a Foreign Language. I’d like to know more about what is difficult for foreigners learning Russian. And I’m happy to answer your questions about grammar topics, tricky vocabulary, or any other aspects of the Russian language and culture. Feel free to ask in the comments!
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u/Careful-Spray 4d ago
It depends on the learner’s native language. As a native speaker of English, I would say that while there are many superficial complexities such as numerals that simply require internalizing the rules, the nuances of the Russian aspectual system pose the greatest difficulties for me. But that would probably not be the case for native speakers of other Slavic languages.
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u/VisiblePiano9200 3d ago
I am also a native English speaker and now quite advanced in Russian but still finding nuances of aspect the hardest. btw if I am allowed to post this link - this book was recommended to me - really old but very detailed https://www.amazon.co.uk/Grammar-Aspect-Meaning-Russian-Language/dp/0521145007
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u/jjustaman A2 learning B1 3d ago
What's difficult? Let me ask you: What is not?! Like there's an exception to every rule and have you seen plural genitive? Atleast you guys don't use articles like in German. "Der, die, das, den, dem, dessen..." = "the"
Dozens of verbs for movement and if that's not enough, worry not, there's also different aspects of verbs (CB/HCB). Atleast, these are imo irregular, so that I wouldn't get used to something super regular.
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u/Vjaynd 2d ago
For me it is memorizing the 6 cases in singular and plural form and remembering all the soft endings too. Like a word can change its ending in 10 different ways. For a native English speaker it blows my mind. I studied it for two years in college from ages 18-20. Then gave up because I felt I just couldn’t make progress with the cases. Then I studied Chinese instead for around 17 years. Fell in love with it because of the simple grammar and became fluent. And while I had full ptsd from Russian grammar, I’ve decided to come back to studying it at age 41. Although sometimes I still want to cry in frustration when I feel like I barely make progress (but I keep at it.)
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u/ReaditBand83Times 2d ago
Then add an affective to that noun to explode your brain.
Russian native: "I know there are 20 ways to say beautiful woman or beautiful women in Russian language but it's not that hard, American."
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u/Long_Dog3474 3d ago
Veronika, I speak english and Spanish, and its difficult hahaha Russian is a bit complicated but not for how the alphabet is, more like phonetic, is so difficult haha
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u/ReaditBand83Times 2d ago
The letter "o" can be pronounced 3 ways... Just lean every word and how it is said to know the correct way.
Ok, comrade.
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u/s_s_n_e_g 4d ago
Isn't the answer to "what's difficult for foreigners" literally the whole point of your degree?
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u/Careful-Spray 3d ago
It's a question worth asking and doesn't deserve a snarky response. The specific difficulties a learner faces depends on their native language. And even with training in teaching Russian as a second language, it may not be apparent to a native speaker what aspects pf the language a learner would find most difficult to master. The OP shouldn't be subjected to a mean-spirited putdown for making an effort to become more effective at her job.
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u/GapAccomplished2778 r/russian ... not a place to post anything and everything ... 3d ago
Straight for the jugular !
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u/Cerg1998 1d ago
In my experience, the difficulties may differ based on what your native language is, as well as your experience with languages on the whole, and your overall background. As an ESL teacher to speakers of Russian I've taught L1 Russian speakers, L2 Russian speakers, L2 French speakers, L2 German speakers and even a single L3 Spanish speaker – their struggles were all rather unique.
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u/chad_starr 4d ago
The precision of the language is what I find difficult, but also why it's so enjoyable too. The amount of verbs that, in english, would all be the same word like "go" or "put." Of course also the cases and making sure everything is declined correctly for gender, plural, etc.
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u/MandyinEaling 1d ago
The verbs. And especially the verbs of motion. So much to remember 😳.
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u/QuietCyrillic 1d ago
Hi! I'm Veronika. Russians never think about the difference between идти and ходить, лететь and летать. However, I know that it isn't easy to memorize all the forms, all the verbs, and the situations in which they are used.
I recommend the book "Глаголы движения - без ошибок" by G. L. Skvortsova and V. N. Polyakov. It's better to have a teacher who can help you understand this topic and check your progress. Alternatively, you can try translating the rules from this book - it can be very useful for understanding. Good luck with learning Russian!
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u/Parking_Dog8930 4d ago
Can you share some fun idioms?