Making Sentences in Russian: A Simple Guide

When you write or speak in Russian, you can make your sentences more interesting by mixing them up. You do this with special words called conjunctions.

Let’s break it down!

1. What Are Conjunctions?

Conjunctions are words that join sentences or parts of sentences. In Russian, there are three main types of conjunctions:

• Coordinating Conjunctions: These connect equal parts. Some common ones are:

  • и (and)
  • но (but)
  • или (or)

• Subordinating Conjunctions: These connect a main idea with a supporting idea. Here are some examples:

  • что (that)
  • потому что (because)
  • если (if)

• Correlative Conjunctions: These work in pairs to link ideas. For example:

  • не только... но и (not only... but also)

2. How to Combine Sentences

Here are some easy steps to combine your sentences:

a. Start with Simple Sentences

First, choose two simple sentences. For example:

• Я люблю читать. (I love reading.)
• Я люблю писать. (I love writing.)

b. Use Coordinating Conjunctions

Next, connect them using a coordinating conjunction:

• Я люблю читать и писать. (I love reading and writing.)

c. Add Subordinate Clauses

Now, you can add more details with a subordinate clause:

• Я люблю читать, потому что это интересно. (I love reading because it is interesting.)

This helps explain why you love reading.

d. Try Different Subordinating Conjunctions

Change it up with different subordinating conjunctions. Here are two examples:

• Я читаю, когда у меня есть свободное время. (I read when I have free time.)
• Хотя я устал, я продолжал работать. (Although I was tired, I continued to work.)

3. Practice Combining Sentences

To improve, practice making your own complex sentences. Here are a few simple sentences to combine:

1. Я люблю природу. (I love nature.)
2. Я хожу в походы. (I go hiking.)
3. Погода хорошая. (The weather is nice.)

You can put them together like this:

• Я люблю природу, потому что погода хорошая, и я хожу в походы. (I love nature because the weather is nice, and I go hiking.)

4. Break Down Complex Sentences

To really understand how sentences work, try breaking them into parts. For example:

• Я учусь русского языка, потому что хочу работать в России.
  • Independent clause: Я учусь русского языка (I am studying the Russian language)
  • Subordinate clause: потому что хочу работать в России (because I want to work in Russia)

5. Keep Practicing

Finally, use different conjunctions when you talk or write every day. The more you practice, the easier it will be to create complex sentences.

By following these steps, you will understand how to build sentences in Russian better. This will help you improve at the language!