Quick answer
A consonant goes soft before е, ё, и, ю, я and before ь. Softness means the middle of the tongue rises, as if a tiny “y” followed.
The two vowel rows
| Hard | Soft | Example pair |
|---|---|---|
| а | я | мал — мял |
| о | ё | нос — нёс |
| у | ю | лук — люк |
| ы | и | быть — бить |
| э | е | сэр — сер |
The vowel letter does two jobs at once: it names a vowel and tells you whether the consonant before it is hard or soft.
It changes the word
Each pair differs only in the softness of the last consonant. To a Russian ear they are as different as “pat” and “bat”.
Three that never change
ж, ш, ц are always hard, ч, щ, й always soft — whatever vowel follows. That is why the spelling rules single them out.
How to practise
Say “nyet”, then remove the y but keep the tongue position. That is a soft н. Do the same with д, т, л and р and you have covered most of what English speakers miss.
Typical mistakes
Pronouncing брать like брат
soften the т
Two different words.
Adding a full “y” sound
a tongue position, not a syllable
Overdoing it sounds as foreign as leaving it out.
Check yourself
Which letter always makes the consonant before it soft?