25 Russian Adjectives for Beginners

In this lesson, you will learn 25 of the most common and useful adjectives in Russian for beginners.

I will show you the meanings, main forms and multiple examples of each of these adjectives.

Here is a list of the adjectives you are going to learn:

хороший
плохой
красивый
холодный
горячий
маленький
большой
новый
старый
дорогой
дешёвый
интересный
скучный
трудный
лёгкий
вкусный
полезный
чистый
грязный
важный
смешной
известный
высокий
низкий
умный

If there is any adjective in the above list that you would like to learn first, you can click on it and go straight to that part of the lesson.

To memorize all these adjectives easily, I recommend that you create a flashcard for each of them, so you can review them later.

хороший

The adjective хороший means ‘good’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
хороший	хорошая	хорошее	хорошие

For example:

Он хороший человек.
(He is a good person)
Дома здесь хорошие.
(Houses are good here)
У него хорошая машина.
(He has a good car)
Они очень хорошие ученики.
(They are very good students)

To see more examples of хороший, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of хороший in all the cases and its short forms:

плохой

The adjective плохой means ‘bad’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
плохой	плохая	плохое	плохие

For example:

Погода сегодня плохая.
(The weather is bad today)
У неё плохой начальник.
(She has a bad boss)
Это плохая идея.
(This is a bad idea)
Наши учителя не очень плохие.
(Our teachers are not so bad)

To see more examples of плохой, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of плохой in all the cases and its short forms:

красивый

The adjective красивый means ‘beautiful’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
красивый	красивая	красивое	красивые

For example:

Моя жена очень красивая.
(My wife is very beautiful)
Это красивое животное.
(That is a beautiful animal)
У него красивый дом.
(He has a beautiful house)
Сад красивый.
(The garden is beautiful)

To see more examples of красивый, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of красивый in all the cases and its short forms:

холодный

The adjective холодный means ‘cold’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
холодный	холодная	холодное	холодные

For example:

Сегодня холодный день.
(It's a cold day today)
Это холодное блюдо.
(This is a cold dish)
Я не люблю холодный чай.
(I don't like cold tea)
Мои руки холодные.
(My hands are cold)

To see more examples of холодный, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of холодный in all the cases and its short forms:

горячий

The adjective горячий means ‘hot’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
горячий	горячая	горячее	горячие

For example:

Я предпочитаю горячий кофе.
(I prefer hot coffee)
Вода слишком горячая.
(The water is too hot)
Я люблю горячий чай.
(I like hot tea)
Компьютер горячий.
(The computer is hot)

To see more examples of горячий, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of горячий in all the cases and its short forms:

маленький

The adjective маленький means ‘small’ or ‘little’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
маленький	маленькая	маленькое	маленькие

For example:

У нас маленькие дети.
(We have little children)
Наша квартира маленькая.
(Our apartment is small)
Когда я был маленький, у меня было много игрушек.
(When I was little, I had many toys)
У них маленькая дочь.
(They have a little daughter)

To see more examples of маленький, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of маленький in all the cases and its short forms:

большой

The adjective большой means ‘big’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
большой	большая	большое	большие

For example:

У неё большая собака.
(She has a big dog)
Наша квартира большая.
(Our apartment is big)
Я не люблю большие города.
(I don't like big cities)
В этом городе есть большие парки.
(There are big parks in this city)

To see more examples of большой, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of большой in all the cases and its short forms:

новый

The adjective новый means ‘new’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
новый	новая	новое	новые

For example:

У них новая машина.
(They have a new car)
Это мой новый компьютер.
(This is my new computer)
Она всегда покупает новые платья.
(She is always buying new dresses)
Это наш новый учитель.
(That is our new teacher)

To see more examples of новый, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of новый in all the cases and its short forms:

старый

The adjective старый means ‘old’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
старый	старая	старое	старые

For example:

Она не любит старые города.
(She doesn't like old towns)
Моя машина очень старая.
(My car is very old)
Он отдал свои старые книги.
(He gave away his old books)
Она потеряла свой старый телефон.
(She lost her old phone)

To see more examples of старый, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of старый in all the cases and its short forms:

дорогой

The adjective дорогой means ‘expensive’ or ‘dear’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
дорогой	дорогая	дорогое	дорогие

For example:

Эта машина очень дорогая.
(This car is very expensive)
Они никогда не покупают дорогие подарки.
(They never buy expensive gifts)
Она купила дорогое платье.
(She bought an expensive dress)
Этот ресторан немного дорогой.
(This restaurant is a bit expensive)

To see more examples of дорогой, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of дорогой in all the cases and its short forms:

дешёвый

The adjective дешёвый means ‘cheap’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
дешёвый	дешёвая	дешёвое	дешёвые

For example:

Ей не нравится дешёвая одежда.
(She doesn't like cheap clothes)
Мы нашли дешёвый отель.
(We found a cheap hotel)
Эти рубашки довольно дешёвые.
(These shirts are quite cheap)
Это блюдо слишком дешёвое.
(This dish is too cheap)

To see more examples of дешёвый, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of дешёвый in all the cases and its short forms:

интересный

The adjective интересный means ‘interesting’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
интересный	интересная	интересное	интересные

For example:

Это интересная тема.
(That is an interesting subject)
Мы посмотрели интересный фильм.
(We watched an interesting movie)
Его выступления всегда интересные.
(His speeches are always interesting)
У нас был интересный разговор.
(We had an interesting conversation)

To see more examples of интересный, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of интересный in all the cases and its short forms:

скучный

The adjective скучный means ‘boring’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
скучный	скучная	скучное	скучные

For example:

Эта книга немного скучная.
(This book is a bit boring)
Его уроки скучные.
(His lessons are boring)
Я думаю, что эта игра скучная.
(I think this game is boring)
Это скучное место.
(This is a boring place)

To see more examples of скучный, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of скучный in all the cases and its short forms:

трудный

The adjective трудный means ‘difficult’ or ‘hard’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
трудный	трудная	трудное	трудные

For example:

Он принял трудное решение.
(He took a difficult decision)
Русский язык трудный.
(Russian is a difficult language)
Они трудные дети.
(They are difficult kids)
Это трудная тема.
(This is a hard subject)

To see more examples of трудный, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of трудный in all the cases and its short forms:

лёгкий

The adjective лёгкий means ‘easy’ or ‘light’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
лёгкий	лёгкая	лёгкое	лёгкие

For example:

Это лёгкий вопрос.
(This is an easy question)
У них лёгкая жизнь.
(They have an easy life)
Это очень лёгкое задание.
(This is a very easy task)
Сумки лёгкие.
(The bags are light)

To see more examples of лёгкий, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of лёгкий in all the cases and its short forms:

вкусный

The adjective вкусный means ‘tasty’ or ‘delicious’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
вкусный	вкусная	вкусное	вкусные

For example:

Суп очень вкусный.
(The soup is very tasty)
Её пирожки всегда вкусные.
(Her pies are always delicious)
Яблоко вкусное.
(The apple is tasty)
Этот кофе не такой вкусный.
(This coffee is not so tasty)

To see more examples of вкусный, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of вкусный in all the cases and its short forms:

полезный

The adjective полезный means ‘useful’ or ‘healthy’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
полезный	полезная	полезное	полезные

For example:

Овощи полезные.
(Vegetables are healthy)
Его объяснение было очень полезное.
(His explanation was very useful)
Эта книга полезная.
(This book is useful)
Яблоко – очень полезный фрукт.
(The apple is a very healthy fruit)

To see more examples of полезный, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of полезный in all the cases and its short forms:

чистый

The adjective чистый means ‘clean’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
чистый	чистая	чистое	чистые

For example:

Окно чистое.
(The window is clean)
Одежда чистая?
(Are the clothes clean?)
Наш город очень чистый.
(Our city is very clean)
Его машина всегда чистая.
(His car is always clean)

To see more examples of чистый, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of чистый in all the cases and its short forms:

грязный

The adjective грязный means ‘dirty’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
грязный	грязное	грязная	грязные

For example:

Одежда грязная.
(The clothes are dirty)
Пол грязный?
(Is the floor dirty?)
Их сад всегда грязный.
(Their garden is always dirty)
Окно грязное.
(The window is dirty)

To see more examples of грязный, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of грязный in all the cases and its short forms:

важный

The adjective важный means ‘important’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
важный	важная	важное	важные

For example:

Это важное сообщение.
(This is an important message)
Он важный человек.
(He is an important person)
Это важный вопрос.
(It’s an important question)
Он сказал что-нибудь важное?
(Did he say anything important?)

To see more examples of важный, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of важный in all the cases and its short forms:

смешной

The adjective смешной means ‘funny’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
смешной	смешная	смешное	смешные

For example:

Наша учительница смешная.
(Our teacher is funny)
Он смешной человек.
(He is a funny person)
Этот клоун очень смешной.
(This clown is very funny)
У них смешные дети.
(They have funny kids)

To see more examples of смешной, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of смешной in all the cases and its short forms:

известный

The adjective известный means ‘famous’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
известный	известная	известное	известные

For example:

Это известный парк.
(This is a famous park)
Она известная певица.
(She is a famous singer)
Это известное кафе.
(This is a famous cafe)
Почему это стихотворение такое известное?
(Why is this poem so famous?)

To see more examples of известный, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of известный in all the cases and its short forms:

высокий

The adjective высокий means ‘tall’ or ‘high’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
высокий	высокая	высокое	высокие

For example:

Я видел очень высокое дерево.
(I saw a very tall tree)
Это высокая башня.
(This is a tall tower)
Мой брат очень высокий.
(My brother is very tall)
Это самое высокое здание в городе.
(This is the tallest building in the city)

To see more examples of высокий, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of высокий in all the cases and its short forms:

низкий

The adjective низкий means ‘short’ or ‘low’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
низкий	низкая	низкое	низкие

For example:

Она низкая девочка.
(She is a short girl)
Деревья ещё низкие.
(The trees are still short)
Забор очень низкий.
(The fence is very low)
У неё низкое давление.
(She has low blood pressure)

To see more examples of низкий, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of низкий in all the cases and its short forms:

умный

The adjective умный means ‘smart’ or ‘intelligent’.

Here are all its forms in the Nominative Case:

Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural
умный	умная	умное	умные

For example:

Она умная женщина.
(She is a smart woman)
Мой брат умный.
(My brother is intelligent)
Мои коллеги очень умные.
(My colleagues are very intelligent)
Это умное животное.
(This is a smart animal)

To see more examples of умный, check it out in our dictionary.

Here is a picture of умный in all the cases and its short forms:

And that’s it. Now you know 25 of the most common and useful Russian adjectives.

Don't forget to make flashcards for these words and practice them with our interactive exercises to make sure you memorize everything you've learnt in this lesson.

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