не может быть
“не может быть” (ne mozhet byt) — it cannot be in Russian. Phrase, level B1, topic — basic words. Ne mozhet byt, chtoby on vsyo zabyl! — "it cannot be that he forgot everything!" — the cry at what cannot be believed; from moch, to be able: the believer has no room for it in the head. In a live sentence: “Не может быть, чтобы он всё забыл!” — It cannot be that he forgot everything!
In short
| Written in Russian | не может быть |
| Read in Latin letters | ne mozhet byt |
| Translation | it cannot be |
| Part of speech | phrase |
| Level | B1 |
Why it looks that way
Ne mozhet byt, chtoby on vsyo zabyl! — "it cannot be that he forgot everything!" — the cry at what cannot be believed; from moch, to be able: the believer has no room for it in the head.
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- Не может быть, чтобы он всё забыл!Ne mozhet byt, chtoby on vsyo zabyl!It cannot be that he forgot everything!
Nearby words: basic words
Yes, no, good, bad, very. The small change of a language — and no sentence assembles without it.
- даdayesThe shortest word of agreement there is. The negation of a verb is a different word, ne: ne ponimayu, "I do not understand".
- нетnetnoSays "no" and also "there is not": menya net vremeni is literally "of me there is no time". A verb, by contrast, is negated by ne, a word of its own.
- иiandKeeps a list together even in front of the last item: khleb i moloko. It never changes shape, whatever it joins.
- аaand (contrasting)Compares rather than opposes: ya rabotayu, a ty? — "I work, and you?". English folds it into "and" or "but"; the contrast here is softer than no.
- хорошоkhoroshogood, fineBoth the adverb "well" and the standard reply to how-are-you. Stress it on the end: kha-ra-SHO.
- плохоplokhobad, badlyThe twin of khorosho. Often about how someone feels rather than a verdict: mne ploho means "I feel bad".
- отличноotlichnogreatKhorosho with a margin, from otlichit, "to tell apart" — also the top school mark. The bright answer to how-are-you.
- наnaon, atA chameleon of a preposition: na ulitse, na pochte, na dve nedeli. English splits it into on, at and for; this one does all three.
- вvin, intoOne letter, two cases: v gorode says where, v gorod says where to. Place and direction ride on the case, not on two prepositions.
- ноnobutArgues rather than compares: khochu, no nelzya. The twin of a: a compares, no stands against; English folds both into "but".
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “basic words”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “it cannot be” in Russian?
Ne mozhet byt, chtoby on vsyo zabyl! — "it cannot be that he forgot everything!" — the cry at what cannot be believed; from moch, to be able: the believer has no room for it in the head.
- How do you say “great” in Russian?
Khorosho with a margin, from otlichit, "to tell apart" — also the top school mark. The bright answer to how-are-you.
- How do you say “and” in Russian?
Keeps a list together even in front of the last item: khleb i moloko. It never changes shape, whatever it joins.
- How do you say “but” in Russian?
Argues rather than compares: khochu, no nelzya. The twin of a: a compares, no stands against; English folds both into "but".
- How do you say “bad, badly” in Russian?
The twin of khorosho. Often about how someone feels rather than a verdict: mne ploho means "I feel bad".
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “it cannot be” in Russian?
«не может быть», read “ne mozhet byt”. In a live sentence: “Не может быть, чтобы он всё забыл!” — It cannot be that he forgot everything! Phrase, level B1, from the set “basic words”; written with the characters н, е, м, о, ж, е, т, б, ы, т, ь.
How is “не может быть” written in Latin letters?
ne mozhet byt. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
Ne mozhet byt, chtoby on vsyo zabyl! — "it cannot be that he forgot everything!" — the cry at what cannot be believed; from moch, to be able: the believer has no room for it in the head. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.