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Knowing how to talk about parts of the human body in Russian is useful not only in biology class but also in everyday conversation. These Russian vocabulary words come in handy in a range of situations, from telling your doctor what’s troubling you to telling a friend she has spinach in her teeth.
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Parts of the Body: From the Top
Let’s start with a basic vocabulary list and some examples:
Тело (telo) – body
Части тела (chasti tela) – parts of the body
Голова (golova) – head
Волосы (volosy) – hair
На уроке по биологии мы проходили части тела. (Na uroke po biologii my prokhodili chasti tela.) – In biology class, we learned about the parts of the body.
У меня болит голова. (U menya bolit golova.) – I have a headache.
У этой девочки длинные черные волосы. (U etoi devochki dlinnye chyornye volosy.) – This girl has long black hair.
The word “волосы” (volosy – hair) is mostly used in the plural; if you’re talking about hairs, say “волоски” (voloski).
The Face and Everything on It
On your face (лицо – litso) are your eyes (глаза – glaza pl.; “глаз” – glaz sing.), eyebrows (брови – brovi), nose (нос – nos), mouth (рот – rot), and lips (губы – guby).
Practice the example sentences below:
У нее красивые карие глаза. (U nee krasivye karie glaza.) – She has beautiful brown eyes.
Девочки зачем-то рисуют брови. (Devochki zachem-to risuiut brovi.) – Girls paint their eyebrows for some reason.
Она думает, что у нее слишком большой нос. (Ona dumaet, shto u nee slishkom bol'shoi nos.) – She thinks her nose is too big.
Маша красит губы красной помадой. (Masha krasit gyby krasnoi pomadoi.) – Masha colors her lips with red lipstick.
Your tongue (язык – yazyk) and teeth (зубы – zuby) are inside your mouth.
Дети любят показывать язык. (Deti liubyat pokazyvat’ yazyk.) – Children like to show their tongues.
У него здоровые зубы. (U nego zdorovye zuby.) – His teeth are healthy.
У меня болит зуб. (U menya bolit zub.) – I have a toothache.
У него что-то застряло в зубах. (U nego shto-to zastryalo v zubakh.) – He has something stuck in his teeth.
Ears are “уши” (ushi):
Зачем тебе такие большие уши? (Zachem tebe takie bol’shie ushi?) – Why do you have such big ears?
The Rest of the Body
Let’s move down to the neck (шея – sheya) and shoulders (плечи – plechi):
Его шея слишком короткая. (Ego sheya slishkom korotkaya) – His neck is too short.
У этого парня широкие плечи. (U etogo parnya shirokie plechi.) – This guy has broad shoulders.
The same word is used for chest and breasts: “грудь” (grud’), while belly is “живот” (zhivot).
Ребенок лежал у него на груди. (Rebyonok lezhal u nego na grudi.) – The child was lying on his chest.
У меня болит живот. (U menya bolit zhivot.) – I have a stomachache.
Finally we reach the legs and feet, “ноги” (nogi) and “ступни” (stupni), and, of course, the knees, “колени” (koleni).
Я весь день на ногах. (Ya ves’ den’ na nogakh.) – I’m on my feet all day.
У моей бабушки болит колено. (U moei babushki bolit koleno.) – My granny’s knee hurts.
Его ступни большие и некрасивые. (Ego stupni bol’shie i nekrasivye.) – His feet are large and ugly.
Arms, Hands, Fingers, and Toes in Russian
Arms and hands are worth special attention. In Russian, one word is used to talk about the arms and hands: “рука” (ruka). However, there are specific words for the palm, “ладонь” (ladon’), and elbows, “локти” (lokti).
Дай руку. (Dai ruku.) – Give me a hand.
Покажи мне ладони. (Pokazhi mne ladoni.) – Show me your palms.
Убери локти со стола. (Uberi lokti so stola.) – Get your elbows off the table.
Similarly, in Russian both fingers and toes are called “пальцы” (pal’tsy). To distinguish between them, we specify where the digits we’re talking about are located:
Пальцы на руке (pal’tsy na ruke) – fingers
Пальцы на ноге (pal’tsy na noge) – toes
У меня мозоль на большом пальце ноги. (U menya mozol’ na bol’shom pal’tse nogi.) – I have a blister on my big toe.
Like in English, fingers have names:
Большой палец (bol’shoi palets) – thumb
Указательный палец (ukazatelnyi palets) – forefinger
Средний палец (srednii palets) – middle finger
Мизинец (mizinets) – pinkie
However, in Russian the ring finger has no name. It’s called “безымянный палец” (bezymyannyi palets), which means “a finger without name.”
Practicing Your Russian Vocabulary
Learn the main parts of the body in Russian before attempting the names of fingers. To make this process even easier, study Russian vocabulary online with one of our expert tutors.