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A2How to sayne volnúytes

How to say “Don’t worry” in Russian

Reassurance in Russian, and the grammar rule hiding inside it: negative commands take the imperfective.

Quick answer

Не волну́йтесь.

ne volnúytes — imperfective, because negative commands almost always are

The options

Не волну́йтесь.Don’t worry. — polite
Не волну́йся.Don’t worry. — informal
Не пережива́й.Don’t take it to heart.
Всё бу́дет хорошо́.Everything will be fine.
Ничего́ стра́шного.It’s nothing serious.

The negative imperative

A negative command uses the imperfective: не волну́йтесь, не спеши́те, не забыва́йте, не говори́те. A negative *perfective* imperative exists but means a warning — не упади́! means “mind you don’t fall!”, not “don’t fall habitually”.

Which reassurance when

Не волну́йтесь is for nerves and anxiety. Не пережива́й is warmer and more personal. Ничего́ стра́шного answers a mistake or an apology. Всё бу́дет хорошо́ is the big one — the sentence on half the fridge magnets in Russia.

What you hear back

Спаси́бо, мне ле́гче.Thanks, I feel better.
Наде́юсь.I hope so.
Ты прав / права́.You’re right.

Typical mistakes

Не поволну́йтесь.

Не волну́йтесь.

Negative commands take the imperfective.

Не волну́йся — to a stranger

Не волну́йтесь

The polite form takes -тесь.

Check yourself

Which aspect does a negative command use?

Не волну́йтесь — imperfective.

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