Russian letter: В в
The Russian letter В is tricky: it looks like the English letter B but sounds like V.
В and Ф form a pair. When at the end of a word, the letter В tends to sound like Ф.
Writing
Printed 1
В в
Printed 2
В в
Printed 3
В в
Cursive
В в
Hand-written 1
![blank](https://russianalphabeteasy.com/wp-content/plugins/wp-fastest-cache-premium/pro/images/blank.gif)
Hand-written 2
В в
Pronunciation
Transcription
[ v ]
How to pronounce
like v in voice
Pronunciation tips
When at the end of a word, the letter В tends to sound like Ф.
Practice with syllables
- ва
- во
- ве
- ви
- вю
- вя
- вё
- вэ
Words with this letter
With stress marks
ва́за
Cursive / Handwritten
ваза
ваза
ваза
Transcription / Translation
[ vá-za ]
vase
vase
Pronunciation tips
With stress marks
ви́за
Cursive / Handwritten
виза
виза
виза
Transcription / Translation
[ vée-za ]
visa
visa
Pronunciation tips
With stress marks
оли́вка
Cursive / Handwritten
оливка
оливка
оливка
Transcription / Translation
[ a-léef-ka ]
olive
olive
Pronunciation tips
The О is unstressed and pronounced like А.
The В is followed by a voiceless consonants, therefore it's pronounced as Ф.
Practice with a worksheet
Practice the hand-written Russian letter В as well as the syllables and words listed above, with this worksheet: download the worksheet.
So, when it is silent? (Is it ever silent, to begin with?)
Hi Anton,
Thanks for your question.
The letter B is never silent. You are probably confusing it with the soft sign – Ь (https://russianalphabeteasy.com/russian-letters/soft-sign/), this one is always silent and only softens the preceding letter.
It can also be omitted in some rare cases when where are many consonants one after another, like in чувство [chúst-va]. You can read more about it here: https://russianalphabeteasy.com/russian-pronunciation/