You already know 5 Cyrillic letters before learning anything. They look the same as their Latin counterparts and make the same sound.
These are called true friends — no tricks, no memorization. You just recognize them. Spot them on a sign and you can already start sounding out words.
In later lessons you'll meet the false friends — letters that look Latin but sound completely different — and then the genuinely new shapes. But first, easy wins.
Your first 5 letters
А
а
"AH"
like "a" in fatherDE: wie in Bahn
К
к
"K"
exactly like English K
DE: wie in Karte
М
м
"M"
exactly like English M
DE: wie in Mutter
О
о
"OH"
like "o" in oceanDE: wie in Boot
Т
т
"T"
exactly like English T
DE: wie in Tisch
The lowercase forms (shown in grey) are used inside words — just like in English. т looks like a small π but sounds just like T.
Drill — flash the letters
A letter appears. Think of its sound, then reveal to check. Be honest with yourself.
0 of 0 correct
What sound does this make?
А
Word challenge — sound it out
Now try real words using only your 5 letters. Tap each one to reveal — and listen to the pronunciation.
ТОМАТ
КОТ
АТОМ
МОСКВА
GeoGuessr tip: МОСКВА on a sign → you're almost certainly in Russia. С and В are in your next lesson as false friends. One more lesson and you'll read the whole word.
🎉
Lesson complete!
Ask your teacher anything. If something in this lesson is unclear, just ask a follow-up in the chat. Your teacher (Claude) can explain any letter, word, or concept in more depth.