How do you say "laugh" in Russian?

смеяться

smejat'sja

Verb Cyrillic

In Russian, "laugh" is смеяться (smejat'sja).

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Pronunciation

The word rolls off as "smejat'sja", with the final syllable trailing off softly, and the double consonant sound softens once you practice a couple of times.

Writing and usage

смеяться is written using cyrillic. It's a verb, part of the vocabulary taught in the Noun Town language learning game.

Example sentence

Его шутки всегда заставляют меня смеяться.

Ego shutki vsegda zastavljajut menja smejat'sja.

His jokes always make me laugh.

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How to remember смеяться

Attach "smejat'sja" to a quick mental image of a jar of loose change on a shelf — how the word tumbles out quickly seals it in.

Related words

Browse all Russian words in the glossary.

Questions about смеяться

How do you pronounce смеяться?

The word rolls off as "smejat'sja", with the final syllable trailing off softly, and the double consonant sound softens once you practice a couple of times.

Is смеяться formal or casual?

смеяться is a neutral, everyday word that works in both casual and polite speech.

How is смеяться used in Russian?

смеяться is used the same way as the equivalent English verb. For example: Его шутки всегда заставляют меня смеяться. (His jokes always make me laugh.).

Where can I practice Russian words for free?

You can play free Russian minigames in your browser on the Noun Town online games page, no sign-up required. Every word in the Russian glossary also has native audio and an example sentence you can revisit any time.

"Laugh" in other languages

Curated by Callan Ratcliffe

This word is part of the vocabulary taught in the Russian language learning game Noun Town, where words are introduced through play rather than memorisation. Want to play the full game? Get Noun Town on Steam.

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