Stress

Stress (ударение) in Russian is free — it can fall on any syllable and can move when a word changes form (e.g., in plural or different cases).

Why stress matters

• Vowel reduction: unstressed vowels change their sound. The most important change is о → а when unstressed.
• Meaning: some words are distinguished only by stress. E.g., замок (castle) vs. замок (lock), плачу (I cry) vs. плачу (I pay).

Tips

• Always learn new words with their stress marked.
• In dictionaries, stress is shown with an acute accent (́) over the stressed vowel.
• This app highlights the stressed vowel in amber bold throughout.