1000 Words

Learn Russian – start with the 1000 most important words

Around 1000 words are enough to understand roughly 85% of everyday speech. That is exactly what 1000 Words focuses on: instead of endless grammar tables, you first learn the Russian vocabulary you will actually meet in real life – nouns, verbs, adjectives and full sentences, each with translation, example sentence and native-speaker audio.

Learn the way that fits your day: as a video to read along, as an audiobook for your commute or for falling asleep, as an ebook, or with the built-in vocabulary trainer that shows you every word again at the scientifically optimal moment (spaced repetition). Everything is available on the website and in the free app for iOS and Android.

A taste: Russian vocabulary with example sentences

EnglishRussianExample sentence
the appleяблокоI eat the apple.
Я ем яблоко.
the bookкнигаShe reads the book.
Она читает книгу.
the catкотThe cat is sleeping.
Кот спит.
the dogсобакаThe dog is barking.
Собака лает.
the carмашинаHe drives the car.
Он ведёт машину.
the houseдомWe live in a house.
Мы живём в доме.
the chairстулShe sits on the chair.
Она сидит на стуле.
the tableстолPut the book on the table.
Положи книгу на стол.
the windowокноOpen the window.
Открой окно.
the doorдверьClose the door.
Закрой дверь.
the pencilкарандашI write with the pencil.
Я пишу карандашом.
the paperбумагаThe paper is on the table.
Бумага на столе.
the schoolшколаThe school is big.
Школа большая.
the teacherучительThe teacher teaches math.
Учитель преподаёт математику.
the studentученикThe student is studying.
Ученик учится.
the boyмальчикThe boy is playing.
Мальчик играет.
the girlдевочкаThe girl is singing.
Девочка поёт.
the adultвзрослыйThe adult is working.
Взрослый работает.
the friendдругMy friend is here.
Мой друг здесь.
the treeдеревоThe tree is tall.
Дерево высокое.

The 100 most important Russian words →

Essential Russian verbs & adjectives

to acceptпринимать
to addдобавлять
to agreeсоглашаться
to allowразрешать
to askспрашивать
to believeверить
to borrowодолжить
to breakломать
to bringприносить
to buildстроить

Russian sentences for beginners

I like applesМне нравятся яблоки
She is my friendОна моя подруга
It is a sunny dayСолнечный день
He runs fastОн быстро бегает
We are happyМы счастливы
They play soccerОни играют в футбол

How you learn Russian with 1000 Words

🎬 Learning videos

Every word narrated and illustrated – read along and repeat.

🎧 Audiobooks

All vocabulary as audio – including a 3x repetition version, perfect for learning while you sleep.

📖 Ebooks & PDFs

All words and sentences to look up and read offline.

🧠 Vocabulary trainer

Spaced-repetition system like flashcards – reviews exactly when you need them.

✨ AI stories

Short stories built from the words you already know, with audio and tap-to-explain.

📴 Offline mode

Download Premium content and keep learning without internet.

Frequently asked questions

How many words do I need to understand Russian?

With the 1000 most frequent words you understand about 85% of everyday spoken language. That is why 1000 Words focuses exactly on this core vocabulary – organized into nouns, verbs & adjectives and full sentences.

Does learning Russian while sleeping really work?

Research shows the brain consolidates previously learned material during sleep. Our audiobooks with triple repetition are made for this: listen in the evening, relax, and anchor what you learned. Read more in our article on learning while you sleep.

Is 1000 Words free?

Yes, getting started is free: parts of the videos and audiobooks, the vocabulary trainer, the matching game and previews of all content. Premium unlocks everything – including downloads for offline mode.

Who is 1000 Words for?

For beginners and returners (level A1–B1) who want to build a usable Russian vocabulary fast – without grammar overload, with native-speaker audio.

Start learning Russian for free

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