From Cyrillic letters to a real Russian sentence
Published and checked 1 October 2026
You do not need to memorise all 33 Cyrillic letters before reading. Learn М as /m/ and А as /a/, blend ма́ма, then add Э́то to build your first sentence: Э́то ма́ма. — “This is Mum.”
Audio provenance: the examples use Gora’s reviewed Svetlana neural course voice, not a human recording. The transcript, stress and lesson sequence are published alongside the audio so each claim can be checked.
Step 1: connect М to a sound and a word
М — ма́ма.
М looks and sounds like English M. The acute mark in ма́ма shows that the first syllable is stressed; Russian normally prints the word as мама.
Step 2: blend the word
М + А + М + А → ма́ма
Read from left to right: /m/ + /a/ + /m/ + /a/. Both letters are friendly cognates here: their shapes and basic sounds behave as an English-speaking beginner expects.
Step 3: make a sentence
Э́то ма́ма.
Meaning and structure
Э́то means “this is” or “that is” when identifying something. Russian does not need a present-tense word for “is” here, so the sentence is only two spoken words.
Try it yourself
Build the Russian sentence for “This is Mum”:
___ ма́ма.
Show the answer
Э́то ма́ма.
Then substitute a new noun: Э́то кот. — “This is a cat.”
See the product demonstration
Gora’s opening Russian sequence teaches a small letter set, immediately turns it into real words, plays the course voice and checks recognition before adding more letters. Stress marks remain visible while you are learning.
Start the Russian alphabet lesson →
Supporting references
- Gramota.ru — Russian-language spelling and usage reference.
- Gora’s complete Russian Cyrillic guide — all 33 letters and common lookalikes.
- Gora Russian course overview — course sequence, platforms and trial terms.