What is for dinner in Russian
A kitchen in an apartment, two people at the stove in Russian. 7 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Что на ужин? Я хочу готовить.» — What is for dinner? I want to cook; «У нас картофель, морковь и лук.» — We have potatoes, carrots and onion.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a kitchen in an apartment, two people at the stove. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- Что на ужин? Я хочу готовить.Chto na uzhin? Ya khochu gotovit.What is for dinner? I want to cook.
- У нас картофель, морковь и лук.U nas kartofel, morkov i luk.We have potatoes, carrots and onion.
- Хорошо. Я хочу варить суп, а ты?Khorosho. Ya khochu varit sup, a ty?Good. I want to make soup, and you?
- А я буду жарить рыбу. Сковорода там.A ya budu zharit rybu. Skovoroda tam.And I'll fry the fish. The pan is there.
- Есть соль? Суп без соли — не суп.Est sol? Sup bez soli — ne sup.Is there salt? Soup without salt is not soup.
- Соль здесь, и перец тоже. Пробуй.Sol zdes, i perets tozhe. Probuy.The salt is here, and the pepper too. Taste it.
- Вкус хороший? Мне кажется, солёный.Vkus khoroshiy? Mne kazhetsya, solyonyy.Is the taste good? It seems salty to me.
Lines one by one
| Russian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Что на ужин? Я хочу готовить. | Chto na uzhin? Ya khochu gotovit. | What is for dinner? I want to cook. |
| У нас картофель, морковь и лук. | U nas kartofel, morkov i luk. | We have potatoes, carrots and onion. |
| Хорошо. Я хочу варить суп, а ты? | Khorosho. Ya khochu varit sup, a ty? | Good. I want to make soup, and you? |
| А я буду жарить рыбу. Сковорода там. | A ya budu zharit rybu. Skovoroda tam. | And I'll fry the fish. The pan is there. |
| Есть соль? Суп без соли — не суп. | Est sol? Sup bez soli — ne sup. | Is there salt? Soup without salt is not soup. |
| Соль здесь, и перец тоже. Пробуй. | Sol zdes, i perets tozhe. Probuy. | The salt is here, and the pepper too. Taste it. |
| Вкус хороший? Мне кажется, солёный. | Vkus khoroshiy? Mne kazhetsya, solyonyy. | Is the taste good? It seems salty to me. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and noticeably so. The link turns up study after study, and together those studies cover almost twenty thousand people.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Russian in this situation?
“Что на ужин? Я хочу готовить.” (Chto na uzhin? Ya khochu gotovit.) — What is for dinner? I want to cook. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.