Russian Language Final Control Study Guide 2025-2026

General Information and Academic Context

• Document Purpose: Final Control Assessment for the discipline "Russian Language."
• Academic Year: 2025-2026.
• Target Audience: Students of the Faculty of Translation (encompassing all directions/specializations).
• Academic Authority: Approved by the Dean of the Faculty of Russian Philology, A.B. Rakhmonov.
• Educational Institution: Uzbekistan State University of World Languages (UzSWLU / УзГУМЯ).

Phonetics and Orthography

• Distinguishing Sounds and Letters:   - Letters are symbols that we write and see.   - Sounds are phonetic units that we hear and speak.   - They are not synonyms; they represent different aspects of language communication (visual vs. auditory).

Morphology: Nouns and Gender

• Definition of Noun: A part of speech that denotes an object or person.
• Interrogative Pronouns for Nouns: Nouns answer the questions "Who?" (Кто?) for animate objects and "What?" (Что?) for inanimate objects.
• Gender Categories and Examples:   - Masculine (Мужской род): Examples include "дом" (house), "компьютер" (computer), "ключ" (key), "маркер" (marker), "кофе" (coffee - an exception often used in tests), "пароход" (steamboat).   - Feminine (Женский род): Examples include "аудитория" (auditorium), "тетрадь" (notebook), "кофта" (jacket/sweater), "мать" (mother), "фамилия" (surname), "сумка" (bag), "роза" (rose).   - Neuter (Средний род): Examples include "дитя" (child), "окно" (window), "имя" (name), "семя" (seed), "семечко" (small seed), "море" (sea), "животное" (animal), "насекомое" (insect), "задание" (assignment), "хобби" (hobby).
• Noun Declension Types:   - 2nd Declension: Includes masculine nouns with zero ending (e.g., "соловей") and neuter nouns.
• Specific Word Analysis:   - The word "аудитория" has the ending "-ия".   - Soft sign nouns like "тетрадь" are feminine, while "шкаф" is masculine.

Morphology: Adjectives and Pronouns

• Adjective Endings by Gender:   - Masculine: "-ий" (e.g., синий), "-ый" (e.g., новый).   - Feminine: "-яя" (e.g., синяя), "-ая" (e.g., новая).   - Neuter: "-ое" (e.g., новое, любимое).   - Plural: "-ые" (e.g., новые).
• Possessive Pronouns:   - Agreement with gender and number: "мой дом" (masc. sing.), "моя тетрадь" (fem. sing.), "мое хобби" (neut. sing.), "твои родители" (plural).   - The construction "У меня есть…" (I have…) corresponds to the possessive "Это мой/моя…".   - Third-party possession: "его ключ" (his key), "у нее есть телефон" (she has a phone).
• Demonstrative and Interrogative Pronouns:   - "Чей" (Whose) must agree with the noun: "Чей это ключ?" vs. "Чьи это часы?" (plural).

Morphology: Verbs and Conjugation

• Definition of Verb: A part of speech denoting an action or state, answering "what to do?" (что делать?) or "what will/has been done?" (что сделать?).
• Tense Formation:   - Past Tense: Generally formed by removing the infinitive suffix "-ть" and adding the suffix "-л" (e.g., жил, учился, смотрели).   - Present/Future Tense Conjugation: Suffixes like "-ю" (1st person sing.), "-ешь" (2nd person sing. 1st conjugation).
• Conjugation Classes:   - 1st Conjugation: Examples include "брить" (to shave), "стелить" (to spread).   - 2nd Conjugation: Examples include "слышать" (to hear), "дышать" (to breathe), "красить" (to paint), "ходить" (to walk).
• Verb Aspect:   - Perfective (Совершенный вид): Actions completed (e.g., накормить, переписать, проверить).   - Imperfective (Несовершенный вид): Ongoing or repeated actions (e.g., любить, плавать, танцевать).

Numerals and Telling Time

• Numerical Categories: Cardinal (два, пять) and Ordinal (первый, четвертый).
• Telling Time in Russian:   - (10:50) is described as "Без десяти одиннадцать" (Ten to eleven).   - (16:15) is described as "Пятнадцать минут пятого" (Fifteen minutes past four/fifth hour).   - (11:20) is described as "В двадцать минут двенадцатого" (Twenty minutes past eleven/twelfth hour).
• Duration: An academic "pair" (double lecture) lasts 80 minutes ("восемьдесят минут"), which is equivalent to one hour and twenty minutes ("час двадцать").

Syntax: The Sentence Structure

• Syntax Definition: The study of sentences and the connection of words within them.
• Grammatical Foundation (Предикативная часть): Consists of the Subject (Подлежащее) and the Predicate (Сказуемое).   - Subject: The main member answering "who?" or "what?".   - Predicate: The main member that names the action, state, or property of the subject, answering "what to do?".
• Secondary Members of the Sentence:   - Object (Дополнение): Directly or indirectly affected by the action (e.g., "прогноз" in "узнать прогноз").   - Attribute (Определение): Describes qualities of a noun, answering "which?" or "whose?".   - Circumstance (Обстоятельство): Provides context like Place (where?), Time (when?), Manner (how?), Purpose (why?), or Cause.     - Manner: "Ярко горит свеча" (The candle burns brightly).     - Cause: "Сгоряча он не обратил внимания" (In the heat of the moment/due to anger, he didn't notice).
• Sentence Complexity:   - Simple Sentence: Contains one grammatical base.   - Compound Sentence (ССП): Parts are linked by coordinating conjunctions like "и" (addition), "а/но" (contrast), or "или/либо" (choice).   - Complex Sentence (СПП): Contains a main clause and a dependent (subordinate) clause linked by subordinating conjunctions.

Cases and Prepositions

• Prepositional Case (Где? - Where?):   - Endings: usually "-е" (в школе, в Ташкенте, в аптеке, на стадионе).   - Exceptions: "в шкафу" (uses the "-у" ending for location).   - Countries ending in -ия: "в Италии" (ending in "-ии").
• Accusative Case (Куда? - Where to? / Кого? Что?):   - Used with movement: "еду в Ташкент", "иду в музей".   - Used for objects: "читаю интересную книгу", "купила чёрный маркер".
• Genitive Case (Откуда? - From where? / Чего? - Of what?):   - Negation: "нет денег" (no money), "нет маркера" (no marker), "нет времени" (no time).   - Origin: "из Джизака", "из магазина".   - Exclusion: "кроме моркови" (except for carrots).
• Dative Case (Кому? - To whom?):   - Endings: "брату" (masc), "сестре" (fem), "соседу" (masc).   - Personal Pronouns: "мне" (to me), "тебе" (to you), "ему" (to him), "ей" (to her).
• Instrumental Case:   - Expresses pride: "горжусь сыном".   - Expresses instrument/means: "играет на гитаре", "на саксофоне".

Vocabulary and Synonyms/Antonyms

• Antonyms (Opposites):   - Первый (First) - Последний (Last).   - Холодно (Cold) - Жарко (Hot).   - Дорогой (Expensive) - Дешёвый (Cheap).   - Скучный (Boring) - Интересный (Interesting).
• Synonyms:   - "В воскресенье мы ездили в Самарканд" is synonymous with "В воскресенье мы были в Самарканде" in terms of having visited the location.
• Descriptive Adjectives:   - Eyes: "Карие" (brown/hazel), "Зелёные" (green).   - Hair: "Короткие" (short), "Длинные" (long), "Лысый" (bald).   - Personality/Physicality: "Полный" (full/stout) is a euphemism for a person "в теле" (with some weight).

Cultural and Local Context (Uzbekistan and Russia)

• Regional Geography:   - Mention of cities: Tashkent, Bukhara, Samarkand, Fergana, Jizzakh.   - Locations in St. Petersburg: The Hermitage Museum, the phenomenon of "White Nights" (Белые ночи) occurring in the Summer (Летом).
• Local Institutional Knowledge:   - The UzSWLU (УзГУМЯ) Rectorate is located in the Chilanzer district (в Чиланзарском районе).   - University bus routes: Route 131 (сто тридцать первый).
• Cultural Staples:   - Traditional food: Plov (плов), samsa (самса).   - Musical instruments: Rubab (рубаб).