Russian Pod 101

Russian letter: Э э

New look, familiar sound Order in the alphabet: 31

The Russian letter Э is one of the most rarely used letters in the Russian alphabet.

Don't confuse it with the letter Е which sounds very close to it but soft.

Writing

Printed v.1
Э э
Printed v.2
Э э
Printed v.3
Э э
Cursive
Э э
Hand-written
Э э

Pronunciation

As in the alphabet
Actual sound
Transcription
[ e ]
How to pronounce
like e in end
Pronunciation tips

Practice with syllables

  • дэ
  • тэ
  • мэ
  • бэ
  • эс
  • эл

Words with this letter

Audio
With stress marks
эфи́р
Cursive / Hand-written
эфир
эфир
Transcription / Translation
[ e-féer ]
ether
Pronunciation tips
Audio
With stress marks
э́то
Cursive / Hand-written
это
это
Transcription / Translation
[ é-ta ]
it, this
Pronunciation tips

Unstressed О sounds like А.

Audio
With stress marks
ало́э
Cursive / Hand-written
алоэ
алоэ
Transcription / Translation
[ a-ló-e ]
aloe (plant)
Pronunciation tips

Practice with a worksheet

Practice the hand-written Russian letter Э as well as the syllables and words listed above, with this worksheet: download the worksheet.