1,000+ Russian & Polish Words for Slavic Folklore Mastery

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Words 11-20 of 1,000 | Week 2

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Learning Russian & Polish: My Second Ten Words

December 24, 2025 – Journey to Folklore Mastery

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Figure 1 – Russia and Poland Flags

Caption: Russian and Polish flags representing the two Slavic languages in my learning journey.

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“One language sets you in a corridor for life. Two languages open every door along the way.”
– Frank Smith

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Week two of my journey brings ten more essential words in both Russian and Polish. These words continue building the foundation I need for academic research in Slavic folklore and mythology. With twenty words mastered in each language, I’m 2% of the way to my 1,000-word goal.

This week’s words include fundamental verbs and pronouns that appear in virtually every conversation and text. Learning these high-frequency words aligns with Tim Ferriss’s approach – master the most common 1,000 words in any language, and you’ll understand approximately 80% of everyday communication.

I continue learning ten words weekly, creating memorable example sentences to reinforce vocabulary in context. My pace remains sustainable and focused on genuine retention rather than cramming for tests.

By sharing my progress transparently, I create accountability while providing free language resources for anyone interested in Russian, Polish, or Slavic folklore vocabulary.

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This Week’s Words (December 18-24, 2025):

Here are the next 10 words I learned. These continue building the essential foundation for communicating in Russian and Polish.

1. be

🇷🇺 Russian: быть – You say Byt’ to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English: Mm-Wheats.

🇵🇱 Polish: być – You say Bych to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

Baa-ETCH | Baa-itch | Bai-atch
– I’m not set on one best way to pronounce the word in Polish yet, but these are the three closest ways I’m hearing how the word sounds.

Here’s a sentence in English with the word ‘be’:

Be the change you want to see in the world.

Here’s the sentence in Russian:

Станьте тем изменением, которое вы хотите видеть в мире.

Here’s another way it’s written: Stan’te tem izmeneniyem, kotoroye vy khotite videt’ v mire.

Here’s the sentence in Polish:

Bądź zmianą, którą chcesz zobaczyć w świecie.

Here’s another sentence: Born to be wild.

And here’s how it’s written in Russian:

Рожденные быть дикими.

Rozhdennyye byt’ dikimi.

And here’s how it’s written in Polish:

Urodzony, by być dzikim.

2. all

🇷🇺 Russian: все – You say Vse to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English: ssch-owe

🇵🇱 Polish: wszystko – You say Vshist-ko to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English: Shisht-KO

Example: All for one and one for all.

Russian

Один за всех и все за одного.

Odin za vsekh i vse za odnogo.

Polish

Wszyscy za jednego, jeden za wszystkich.

3. they

🇷🇺 Russian: они – You say Oni to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English: Uh-knee

🇵🇱 Polish: oni – You say O-nee to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English: On-Knee

Example: They went that way.

Russian

Они пошли в ту сторону.

Oni poshli v tu storonu.

Polish

Poszli w tamtą stronę.

4. she

🇷🇺 Russian: она – You say Ona to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English: Ah-Na

🇵🇱 Polish: ona – You say O-na to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English: Oh-Na

Example: She’s the one.

Russian

Она — та самая.

Ona — ta samaya.

Polish

To właśnie ona.

5. how

🇷🇺 Russian: как – You say Kak to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

Ka-ck | Cak | Cock

– I’m not set on one best way to pronounce the word in Russian yet, but these are the three closest ways I’m hearing how the word sounds.

🇵🇱 Polish: jak – You say Yak to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English: Ya-AK

Example: How the heck did you fit that elephant into the refrigerator?

Russian

Как, черт возьми, тебе удалось запихнуть этого слона в холодильник?

Kak, chert voz’mi, tebe udalos’ zapikhnut’ etogo slona v kholodil’nik?

Polish

Jakim cudem udało ci się zmieścić tego słonia do lodówki?

6. we

🇷🇺 Russian: мы – You say My to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

Mm-WEI or Mm-Way

🇵🇱 Polish: my – You say Mih to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

Mm-EAR or Mm-aah

Example: We are the champions my friend.

Russian

Мы — чемпионы, мой друг.

My — chempiony, moy drug.

Polish

Jesteśmy mistrzami, przyjacielu.

7. to

🇷🇺 Russian: к – You say K to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

Kah or Cah-rr

🇵🇱 Polish: do – You say Doh to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

Doah or Doe

Example: To be or not to be, that is the question.

Russian

Быть или не быть — вот в чем вопрос.

Byt’ ili ne byt’ — vot v chem vopros.

Polish

Być albo nie być, oto jest pytanie.

8. by

🇷🇺 Russian: к – You say K to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

Kah or Cah-r

🇵🇱 Polish: przez – You say Pshes to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

pu-chez or puh-chez

Example: By and by.

Russian

Со временем.

So vremenem.

Polish

Wkrótce.

9. at

🇷🇺 Russian: в – You say V to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

Vu-Lay-ah

🇵🇱 Polish: w – You say V to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

Nah or Na-ah

Example: At least they have New York Cheesecake.

Russian

По крайней мере, у них есть нью-йоркский чизкейк.

Po krayney mere, u nikh yest’ n’yu-yorkskiy chizkeyk.

Polish

Przynajmniej mają sernik nowojorski.

10. you

🇷🇺 Russian: ты / вы – You say Ty / Vy to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

Thee-ah or Thea

🇵🇱 Polish: ty – You say Tih to pronounce the word phonetically.

Here’s how I say and pronounce this word in English:

Two-ay or Two-ah

Example: You have some nerve showing up in that Weiner Mobile; again.

Russian

У тебя хватает наглости снова появляться на этой своей “сосисочной машине”!

U tebya khvatayet naglosti snova poyavlyat’sya na etoy svoyey “sosisochnoy mashine”!

Polish

Trzeba mieć tupet, żeby znowu pojawić się w tym swoim “samochodzie-parówce”!

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Spotlight Word: они / oni (they)

I chose this word because it’s remarkably similar in both Russian and Polish – another example of the Slavic language connection that makes learning both languages simultaneously effective.

Pronunciation:

• Russian: они sounds like “Oni” in English

• Polish: oni sounds like “O-nee” in English (slightly extended)

Example Sentences:

🇺🇸 English: They went that way.

🇷🇺 Russian: Они пошли в ту сторону.

English pronunciation: Oni poshli v tu storonu.

🇵🇱 Polish: Poszli w tamtą stronę.

Learning Notes:

This pronoun refers to third-person plural. In Slavic folklore stories, они often refers to groups of mythological beings – the domovoi spirits protecting households, the rusalki water nymphs in lakes, or the leshy forest guardians. You’ll encounter this pronoun constantly when reading folklore tales about these collective entities.

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Progress Tracker:

• Common Words Mastered: 20/1,000 Russian | 20/1,000 Polish

• Folklore/Mythology Terms: 0/600

• Days of Study: 9 (December 13-24, 2025)

• Week: 2 of 100

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Why I’m Learning Russian and Polish:

The PhD program in folklore at Indiana University requires students to have a master’s degree and know two languages.

After I retire between 2027-2029, I’ll earn my master’s degree in folklore at George Mason University, concentrating on Slavic mythology. I chose GMU for its proximity to my home and its internship program at the Smithsonian.

After completing my master’s, I’ll pursue my PhD at Indiana University, which has the largest folklore program in America and a dedicated Slavic Department.

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Caption: Baba Yaga, from Grandma Yetta’s bedtime stories.

Figure 2 – Babushka Version of Baba Yaga

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This journey began with my Grandma Yetta’s bedtime stories about Baba Yaga, the domovoi, Koschei the Deathless, and other Slavic mythology tales. Whenever I heard these stories, I could sense when something wasn’t accurately portrayed, and I wanted to know why.

“I love studying folklore and legends. The stories that people passed down for a thousand years without any sort of marketing support are obviously saying something appealing about the basic human condition.” — Tim Schafer

In 2008, I started researching Slavic mythology. I continue this work today because I want to create the most comprehensive Slavic Folklore and Mythology Guide from A-Z. A Slavic folklore encyclopedia was published in 1998, but it mixes Slavic mythology with non-Slavic material (Finno-Ugric, Baltic, and Lapp deities) and presents reconstructed or debated figures as established fact, undermining its scholarly credibility.

Creating an accurate, comprehensive, purely Slavic guide is both an academic pursuit and a way to honor my grandmother, our ancestors, and our culture.

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Figure 3 – Timeline

Caption: The 10-15 year roadmap from language learning to comprehensive Slavic folklore publication.

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Based on comprehensive folklore encyclopedias like the Enzyklopädie des Märchens, which took 40 years to complete, I expect this project to take 10-15 years. The master’s and PhD aren’t just credentials – they’re essential for accessing academic papers, archival materials, and scholarly resources unavailable to the general public.

“If culture was a house, then language was the key to the front door, and to all the rooms inside.” — Khaled Hosseini

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About the Author

J. W. Zarek is a Wall Street Journal bestselling author who has written or co-authored seventeen books, nine of which are published, including seven #1 bestsellers. Twelve of his books are picture books for children ages 4-8, with his debut picture book “Bella Brown’s Messier Than Messy Room” receiving the 2025 Moonbeam Bronze Medal.

Zarek’s 40 years of combined military and federal service bring systematic analysis to complex problems. He’s developing the Authors for America nonprofit concept to connect schools that want author visits with qualified authors who want to visit schools, and fully fund those visits.

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Join the Journey:

Learning alongside me? Drop a comment below or email me at [jwz****@***il.com] – I’d love to hear about your language journey.

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Your Turn:

Have you encountered any of these 10 words before? Which example sentence made you laugh? Share your experience learning Russian or Polish in the comments!

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[Next Week: Words 21-30]