Greetings are the first thing anyone learns in a language, and for good reason: they're the first thing you're judged on. In Russian a greeting isn't just a word — who you say it to, when, and how close you are matters as much as the word itself.

There's one distinction English speakers have to build from scratch, so let's start there.

The one rule: вы or ты

Russian has two words for "you":

  • ты — informal. Friends, family, peers, children.
  • вы — respectful. Anyone older, anyone you don't know, formal settings, service situations.

Modern English has no equivalent, which is exactly why this trips people up. But English used to have it: thou was the intimate form and you the polite one, until "thou" fell out of use around the 17th century. Russian simply kept the system English discarded.

If you speak French (tu/vous), German (du/Sie) or Spanish (tú/usted), you already have the instinct — it's the same idea.

Вы also serves as the plural "you" for any group, formal or not.

Rule of thumb: when unsure, use вы. Being too formal is a much smaller mistake than being too familiar.

Здравствуйте — and the pronunciation trap

Здра́вствуйте is the standard, always-safe "hello". Morning or evening, shop or office.

It looks alarming, but it's shorter than it appears, because the в in the middle is silent:

Здра́вствуйте — written "zdravstvuyte", said ZDRAST-vuy-tye

This is one of the best-known reductions in Russian. Try to pronounce every letter and nobody will follow you; say "zdrastvuyte" and you'll sound natural.

There's also Здра́вствуй for one person you're on ты terms with, but you'll hear it far less. If you learn only one, learn Здра́вствуйте.

Привет and friends

Приве́т — "hi". Between friends, peers, young people. Warm and casual.

Russian Meaning Who to
Приве́т Hi Friends, peers
Здоро́во Hey / What's up Very casual, mostly between men
Дорого́й / Дорога́я Dear Addressing someone close

Saying Приве́т to an official, a teacher or an older stranger lands as rude. A simple reflex keeps you safe: if they address you as вы, answer with Здра́вствуйте.

By time of day

These work in both formal and casual settings — no вы/ты decision required.

До́брое у́тро — Good morning (until around 11)

До́брый день — Good afternoon

До́брый ве́чер — Good evening

Споко́йной но́чи — Good night (going to bed)

A small grammar note: the adjective ending shifts — До́брое but До́брый. That's grammatical gender: у́тро (morning) is neuter, while день (day) and ве́чер (evening) are masculine. Learn them as fixed phrases for now; the logic settles later.

Careful: Споко́йной но́чи means "good night" only as a farewell before sleep — never as a greeting when you meet someone in the evening. For that, use До́брый ве́чер.

"How are you?" — and honest answers

The question you'll hear most:

Как дела́? — How are you? / How's it going?

Formally Как вы?, casually Как ты?

Now a culture note that matters. In English, "How are you?" is usually not a question at all — it's a greeting, answered reflexively with "Fine, thanks." In Russian, Как дела́? is taken as a real question. If things are bad, people say so. An automatic "Great!" can come across as insincere or oddly performative.

Useful answers:

Russian Meaning
Отли́чно Excellent
Хорошо́ Good
Норма́льно Fine, normal
Ничего́ Not bad (literally: "nothing")
Так себе́ So-so
Пло́хо Bad

Then hand it back: А у тебя́? (and you?) or formally А у вас?

Farewells

До свида́ния — Goodbye (formal, always safe)

Пока́ — Bye (casual, everyday)

Уви́димся — See you

До встре́чи — Until we meet

Всего́ до́брого — All the best (polite sign-off)

The two you'll hear most are До свида́ния and Пока́. Ending a phone call, Дава́й is extremely common — it literally means "give" or "come on", but functions as a breezy "right, bye then".

Thanks and politeness

Спаси́бо — Thank you

Большо́е спаси́бо — Thank you very much

Пожа́луйста — Please and You're welcome

That last one surprises everyone: Пожа́луйста does two jobs. It means "please" when you're asking for something and "you're welcome" when you're answering thanks. Context decides.

— Спаси́бо! — Пожа́луйста! — Thanks! — You're welcome!

A more casual reply to thanks: Не́ за что (don't mention it).

For apologies and getting attention:

Извини́те / Прости́те — Excuse me / I'm sorry (formal)

Извини́ / Прости́ — informal

Opening with Извини́те, ... before asking a stranger for directions is completely standard.

Introductions

Меня́ зову́т Джон. — My name is John.

Как вас зову́т? — What's your name? (formal)

Как тебя́ зову́т? — What's your name? (informal)

О́чень прия́тно. — Nice to meet you.

Word for word, Меня́ зову́т means "they call me". Don't translate it — learn it as one block. Treating high-frequency phrases as single units is what makes early Russian feel fast.

One culture note

Russians don't smile reflexively at strangers. This isn't coldness — it's a different convention: a smile is expected to have a reason, rather than serving as social lubrication. A shop assistant who says Здра́вствуйте without smiling is being perfectly pleasant.

Knowing this saves you from reading rudeness into an ordinary interaction.

Pocket summary

Situation Formal Casual
Hello Здра́вствуйте Приве́т
How are you Как вы? Как дела́? / Как ты?
Goodbye До свида́ния Пока́
Excuse me Извини́те Извини́
Thank you Спаси́бо Спаси́бо

Those ten words will carry your first real Russian conversation. Everything else — cases, verbs, vocabulary — builds on top.

One last thing: greetings are learned by ear. Hearing Здра́вствуйте once at the right speed and stress does more than reading it ten times.

Glagol's Phrases module drills the most-used Russian expressions with native recordings and correct stress — greetings included. You see the phrase, hear it, and spaced repetition keeps it.