Pronunciation

Vowels

a ah
like father

e yeh
like yet

ё yo
like yore; always stressed, else it reverts to e

и ee
like seen

o oh
like boat when stressed; when unstressed same as a

у oo
like cartoon

ы yi-RIH
say ee but move the tongue to the back of the mouth

э eh obb-or-OHT-nuh-yeh
like pet

ю yoo
like you

я yah
like Ja in German

The vowels are listed in alphabetical order. Please notice that the vowels also occur in hard/soft pairs: a/я, э/e, o/ё, ы/и, y/ю.

Russian, like English, reduces unstressed vowels. When vowels are unstressed, they are often pronounced like sofa (if hard) or moiety (if soft). There are occasional silent letters, but not nearly as many as in English.