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You have already started learning the Russian language. Sooner or later, you’d probably like to visit Russia to practice your language skills or just to travel through the beautiful country. One of the first challenges you might encounter is shopping. Don’t worry! We’ve got you covered. To expand your Russian vocabulary, study Russian with a tutor.
Essential Vocabulary for Shopping in Russia
Let’s imagine you’re going grocery shopping. You’ve heard that people in Russia don’t speak English fluently, so you need to practice useful shopping phrases. You might need the following words:
Магазин (magazin) – shop
Касса (kassa) – cash desk
Продукты (produkty) – groceries
Дорогой (dorogoi) – expensive
Дешевый (deshevyi) – cheap
Рынок (rynok) – market
If a seller offers you something at the shop, you can say, “I’ll take it,” that is, “Я возьму это” (Ya voz’mu eto) or “Я беру это” (Ya beru eto). There is no difference between these two phrases; both mean “I’ll take it.” You can also say, “Нет, спасибо. Мне это не нужно” (Net, spasibo. Mne eto ne nuzhno) – “No, thanks. I don’t need it.”
To ask how much something costs, use, “Сколько это стоит?” (Skol’ko eto stoit). You can substitute the name of the item you want to ask about for “это” (eto), which means “it.” For instance,
“Сколько стоит кофе?” (Skol’ko stoit kofe?)
How much does coffee cost?
When you want to ask a seller if a certain product is available in the shop, you say, “У вас есть…?” (U vas est…? – Do you have…?).
У вас есть курица? (U vas est’ kuritsa?)
Do you have chicken?
Sometimes, we buy products that are spoiled. Remember, you can give them back. To do this you need to say, “Я хочу вернуть…” (Ya khochu vernut’… – I want to return…).
Я хочу вернуть сыр. Он испорчен. (Ya khochu vernut’ syr. On isporchen.)
I would like to return the cheese. It’s bad.
Talking about the Basics
Now that you know some important phrases, look at the dialogue below to see how you would use them.
Здравствуйте, мне, пожалуйста, пакет молока и булку хлеба. (Zdravstvuite, mne, pozhaluista, paket moloka I bulku khleba.)
Hello, I would like a carton of milk and a loaf of bread, please.
Пожалуйста. Что-нибудь еще? (Pozhaluista. Chto-nibud’ eschyo?)
Here it is. Anything else?
Да, черный чай. (Da, chyornyi chai.)
Yes, black tea, please.
Вам нужен пакет? (Vam nuzhen paket?)
Do you need a bag?
Да. Сколько с меня? (Da. Skol’ko s menya?)
Yes, please. How much is it?
С вас 200 рублей. Расплачиваться будете наличными или картой? (S vas dvesti rublei. Rasplachivat’sya budete nalichnymi ili kartoi?)
It’s 200 rubles. Would you like to pay with cash or a credit card?
Наличными. (Nalichnymi.)
Cash.
Вот ваш чек. (Vot vash check.)
Here is your receipt.
Спасибо. До свиданья. (Spasibo. Do svidan’ya.)
Thank you. Bye.
До свиданья. (Do svidan’ya.)
Bye.
This is a typical conversation that takes place in supermarkets. Memorize these phrases and practice Russian with a tutor to make sure you don’t go hungry when you have to talk about shopping in Russian.