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Russian vocabulary · Beginner
How do you say "to be" in Russian?
быть
bytʹ
In Russian, "to be" is быть.
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Pronunciation
Pronounced BYT' with the softness marked by the apostrophe, making a soft T sound.
Writing and usage
Быть has four letters including the soft marker Ь at the end.
Example sentence
Я хочу быть врачом.
I want to be a doctor.
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How to remember быть
Byt' sounds like 'bite' with a soft ending. To be is to exist, to bite life.
Related words
- call out окликать oklikatʹ
- cut порезать porezatʹ
- leave уйти ujti
- mail отправлять otpravljatʹ
- shower принимать душ prinimatʹ duš
- sleep спать spatʹ
- swim плавать plavatʹ
- take сфотографировать sfotografirovatʹ
- think думать dumatʹ
Browse all Russian words in the glossary.
Questions about быть
How do you say "to be" in Russian?
In Russian, "to be" is быть. It is a noun.
How is быть written in Russian?
Быть has four letters including the soft marker Ь at the end.
How is быть used in a sentence?
Use быть as you would use the equivalent noun in English. For example: Я хочу быть врачом. (I want to be a doctor.).
Where can I practice Russian words for free?
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"To be" in other languages
Curated by Callan Ratcliffe
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