The same happens with the verbs with -вать. These verbs have irregular conjugation in present tense:

• встава́ть – to get up → я встаю́, not вставаю
• устава́ть – to get tired → я устаю́, not уставаю
• дава́ть – to give → я даю́, not даваю
• задава́ть вопрос – to ask a question → я задаю́, not задаваю

вставать will be conjugated like this:

So pay special attention to irregular verbs and always check how the “я” form is built.

5) Учить и учиться
I learn Russian
⛔️ Я учусь русский язык
✅ Я учу русский язык

I study at university
⛔️ Я учу в университете
✅ Я учусь в университете

The Russian verbs "учить" and "учиться" both relate to learning and studying, but they are used differently in sentences.

The verb «учить» means to learn or to study something specific. It always takes a direct object in the accusative case — the subject that you are learning. For example:
Я учу русский язык. – I learn Russian.
Он учит английский. – He learns English.
Мы учим стихотворение. – We are learning a poem (by heart).

This is why «Я учусь русский язык» is wrong. If you want to say “I learn Russian,” you have to say: «Я учу русский язык».

The verb «учиться» means to study or to be a student somewhere. It does not take a direct object. Instead, it is followed by the preposition "в" + a place, or by an adverb that describes how you study. For example:
Я учусь в университете. – I study at university.
Она учится в школе. – She studies at school.
Мы учимся хорошо. – We study well.

6) How to say outside / outdoors?
In Russian the word “outside” or “outdoors” can be translated in different ways, depending on the situation.

The most common expression is «на улице». Literally it means “on the street”, but in Russian everyday speech it is used much more broadly, simply meaning “outside, outdoors”:
Сегодня холодно на улице (It’s cold outside today).
Дети играют на улице (The children are playing outside).
Whenever you want to talk about being outdoors in general, «на улице» is the natural expression.

7) I have an older sister
⛔️ У меня есть старая сестра
✅ У меня есть старшая сестра

In Russian, adjectives like «старый» and «молодой» can describe both people and things, but when we compare people in a family or in age, Russian uses special forms: «старший» and «младший».

The word «старый» simply means “old”: старая книга (an old book), старая машина (an old car), старая женщина (an old woman). It describes age or condition directly. By contrast, «старший» does not mean “older” in the sense of being old, but “elder” or “older in relation to someone else”: старший брат (older brother), старшая сестра (older sister), старший сын (elder son).

The same distinction exists with «молодой» and «младший». The word «молодой» means “young”: молодая девушка (a young girl), молодой человек (a young man), молодая семья (a young family). It describes someone’s youth or freshness. But «младший» means “younger” in relation to someone else, not just “young”: младший брат (younger brother), младшая сестра (younger sister), младший сын (younger son).

In short, remember: use "старый/молодой" for absolute age or condition, and "старший/младший" for relatives and comparisons of age.

8) Идти и ехать
In Russian there are two different verbs for the English idea of “to go,” depending on the way you move.

The verb «идти» means “to go on foot” = to walk. It is used when a person is moving by their own legs: Я иду домой (I am going home on foot). If someone asks you “Куда ты идёшь?”, they are asking where you are walking. The verb focuses on movement without transport, only with your body.

The verb «ехать» means “to go by vehicle, by transport”. It is used when you travel by car, bus, train, bicycle, airplane, or any kind of transport: Я еду домой (I am going home by transport). If someone asks you “Куда ты едешь?”, they are asking where you are going by vehicle.

This difference is very important, because in English we use the same verb “to go” for both situations, but in Russian you must always choose. If you are walking, you have to say «идти»; if you are using transport, you have to say «ехать».

For example, if you are walking to school, you say: Я иду́ в школу.
If you are taking a bus to school, you say: Я е́ду в школу.

9) Сколько и во сколько?

Сколько ты спишь? Я сплю 8 часов.
Во сколько ты идёшь спать? Я иду спать в 8 часов.

The word «сколько» means “how much / how many”. When we talk about time, it asks about duration, how long something lasts:
Сколько ты спишь? (How long do you sleep?)
The answer will give the length of time: Я сплю восемь часов (I sleep for eight hours). So, when you want to ask about the amount of time, use «сколько».

The phrase «во сколько» means “at what time”. When we talk about time here, it asks about the beginning moment of an action. For example:
Во сколько ты идёшь спать? (At what time do you go to bed?)
The answer gives a clock time: Я иду спать в восемь часов (I go to bed at eight o’clock). So, when you want to ask about the exact starting time, you «во сколько».

10) Have you ever done smth?
In Russian there is no Present Perfect tense. Instead, Russians use the past tense of the verb together with the adverb «когда-нибудь», which means “ever, at some time”. This combination gives the same meaning as the English “Have you ever…?”

• Ты когда-нибудь ела борщ? (to a woman)
• Ты когда-нибудь ел борщ? (to a man)

Here:

• ел/ела is the simple past tense of “есть” (to eat),
• когда-нибудь shows that we are asking about any possible time in life.

The answer is also in the past tense, for example:

• Да, я ел борщ. = Yes, I have (I ate borscht before).
• Нет, я никогда не ел борщ. = No, I have never eaten borscht.

This pattern works with all verbs. For example:

• Have you ever been to Moscow? → Ты когда-нибудь был в Москве?
• Have you ever read this book? → Ты когда-нибудь читал эту книгу?
• Have you ever flown by plane? → Ты когда-нибудь летал на самолёте?

So, the formula is very simple:
Ты + когда-нибудь + past tense of the verb + object?

11) Be attentive with НИКОГДА (never)
⛔️ Я никогда был в России
✅ Я никогда не был в России

Notice that to say “never,” Russians use «никогда не» (“never not”), which is the normal negative construction (double negation).
More examples:

• Я никогда не ел борщ.
• Я никогда не смотрел драмы
• Я никогда не буду пить

12) ПисАть или пИсать?
The verb «писа́ть» (with stress on the second syllable) means “to write”. For example: Я пишу́ письмо (I am writing a letter), Он люби́т писа́ть стихи́ (He likes to write poems).

The verb «пи́сать» (with stress on the first syllable) means “to pee” (to urinate). For example: Ребёнок пи́сает в туалете (The child pees in the toilet).

Because these two verbs are so close in spelling mixing them up can create funny or embarrassing mistakes. If someone accidentally says «Я хочу писать» with the wrong stress, it can mean both of “I want to write” and “I want to pee”.

However, while «пи́сать» (to pee) is the regular verb, the verb «писа́ть» (to write) is irregular, and when conjugated, it alternates sounds с//ш. Compare:

That is why it is very important for learners not only to pay attention to stress in Russian but also to use the correct conjugation.

13) Хороший или хорошо?

The weather is good.
⛔️ Погода хорошо.
✅ Погода хорошая.

It’s good outside.
⛔️ На улице хорошая.
✅ На улице хорошо.

An adjective describes a noun. It always answers the question какой/какая/какое/какие? (“what kind of?”). Because it is tied to a noun, it must agree with that noun in gender, number, and case.
For example: "Погода хорошая." Here the noun is “погода” (feminine, singular, nominative), so the adjective also takes the feminine singular nominative form: “хорошая”. This tells us what kind of weather it is – the weather is good.

An adverb describes either an action (verb) or a general state. It answers the question как? (“how?” or “in what way?”). Unlike adjectives, adverbs do not change their form – they stay the same no matter the subject.
For example: “На улице хорошо.” Here there is no noun being described; instead, we are talking about the situation as a whole. The word “хорошо” tells us how it is outside – it is good, pleasant.

More examples:
-В России жить хорошо́ (It’s good to live in Russia)
-У меня хоро́ший телефон (I have a good phone)
-Ты хоро́ший учитель (You are a good teacher)
-Вставать рано утром хорошо́ (It’s good to get up early in the morning)

14) Уже / ещё - what’s the difference?

The key difference is about time and whether an action has happened or continues.

The word «уже» means already. It shows that something has begun, happened, or changed earlier than expected and is true now. For example:
Я уже поел. – I have already eaten.
Он уже дома. – He is already at home.
Ты уже сделал домашнее задание? – Have you already done your homework?
In all these examples, уже points to the fact that the action is completed or the situation has changed by the present moment.

The word «ещё» means still or yet, depending on whether the sentence is positive or negative. In a positive sentence it means that something continues up to now:
Я ещё работаю. – I am still working.
Он ещё в школе. – He is still at school.
Ты ещё хочешь чай? – Do you still want tea?

In a negative sentence, it means not yet:
Я ещё не ел. – I haven’t eaten yet.
Она ещё не пришла. – She hasn’t come yet.
Мы ещё не начали. – We haven’t started yet.

So the difference is clear:
уже = something has happened or changed earlier → already
ещё = something continues (still) or has not happened (not yet)

Compare:
Он уже спит. – He is already asleep.
Он ещё не спит. – He is not asleep yet.
Он ещё спит. – He is still asleep.
These small words are very powerful, because they change the whole meaning of the sentence by pointing to whether the action is finished, continuing, or not started.

15) Почему / потому что
The word «почему» is a question word that means “why” and is used when you want to ask about the reason for something. For example:
Почему ты грустный? – Why are you sad?
Почему они ушли? – Why did they leave?
Почему ты опоздал? – Why are you late?
So, «почему» always introduces a question about the cause of an action or situation.

The phrase «потому что» is the answer. It means “because” and introduces the reason. For example:
Я грустный, потому что устал. – I am sad because I am tired.
Они ушли, потому что было поздно. – They left because it was late.
Я опоздал, потому что не было автобуса. – I was late because there was no bus.

Very often, these two words appear together in a dialogue:
Почему ты смеёшься? – Why are you laughing?
Потому что это смешно. – Because it’s funny.