Prepositions of Place in Russian: How to Use Them Correctly

Prepositions of place in Russian, like in other languages, are used to describe the location or position of objects, people, or events in relation to other things. These prepositions specify where something is located or the relative position of different objects or individuals.

Using prepositions can often be challenging for students. In Russian, it becomes even more confusing as it involves not only selecting the correct preposition but also adjusting the noun’s ending in accordance with the preposition and the appropriate case.

Today, we will focus on understanding the usage of prepositions of place and ensuring that the noun following them is in the correct case to create natural-sounding phrases.

In Russian, common prepositions of place include: в, на, у, над, под, около, возле, вокруг, между, перед, за.

В (in, at)

Indicating being inside or in a specific location.

в стакане (in a glass)

в ящике (in a drawer/in a box)

в комнате (in a room)

в кастрюле (in a pot)

в ванне (in a bathtub)

в ведре (in a bucket)

Example sentences:

• Я храню вещи в шкафу. – I keep clothes in the closet.
• Мы стираем носки в тазу. – We wash our socks in a basin.
• В спальне две кровати. – There are two beds in the bedroom.

See Also: Prepositions of Tme in Russian

На (on, at)

Indicating being on a surface or an object.

Example: Книга лежит на столе. – The book is on the table.

на полу (on the floor)

на диване (on the couch)

на стенах (on the walls)

на потолке (on the ceiling)

на подоконнике (on the windowsill)

Example sentences:

• На окне грязь. – There’s dirt on the window.
• Я сижу на стуле. – I’m sitting on the chair. (If it is the armchair, you should say “in”: в кресле).

The most common confusion when using prepositions lies in differentiating between в and на.

В is similar to the English preposition “in”. It denotes that someone or something is located inside something or someone. On the other hand, на is similar to “on” and indicates that someone or something is located on the surface of something or someone. Both prepositions (when indicating location) are used with the prepositional case.

Here are a few examples to illustrate the difference:

в шкафу – in the closet (inside)

на столе – on the table (on the surface)

на раковине – on the surface of the sink

в раковине – inside the sink

You can check out more about how these prepositions are used in the article “Understanding the Usage of в and на“. Give it a read!

Над (above/over)

The preposition “над” in Russian is used to indicate the position of something being above or over another object or location.

Самолёт летит над горами. – The airplane is flying over the mountains.

Он держит зонтик над головой. – He is holding an umbrella over his head.

Картина висит над камином. – The painting is hanging above the fireplace.

Звёзды светят над городом. – The stars are shining over the city.

Птицы летают над полями. – Birds are flying over the fields.

Под (under/below)

The preposition “под” is used to indicate the position of something being under or below another object or location.

Моя кошка спит под кроватью. – My cat is sleeping under the bed.

Метро проходит под землёй. – The metro runs underground.

Он сидит под деревом и читает книгу. – He is sitting under a tree and reading a book.

Девочка спряталась под одеялом. – The girl hid under the blanket.

It’s important to note that, “над” and “под” take the instrumental case, so the noun following it will have its ending modified accordingly.

У (by, next to)

The preposition “у” is typically used to convey proximity or being near a place. It means “by” or “next to“. For example, “у дома” means near the house (not inside or on the surface of it).

Here are some common ways to use “у” in this context:

Он живет у моря/реки. – He lives by the sea/river.

Магазин у станции метро. – The shop by the metro station.

Мы ждали у дороги почти два дня. – We waited by the roadside for almost two days.

Instead of “у” you can also use возле. It means thew same thing.

When talking about being at someone’s place, the preposition “у” is commonly used in Russian. It is used to indicate that someone is staying or visiting at someone else’s place.

Я живу у родителей. – I live at my parents’ place.

Он гостит у бабушки. – He is staying at his grandmother’s place.

Моя мама сейчас у подруги. – My mom is currently at her friend’s place.

Remember that “у” requires the genitive case, so the following noun will have its ending modified accordingly.

Около (near)

Около also means ‘near,’ but it is used differently compared to у. Instead of ‘у дома,’ you can say ‘около дома,’ but у and около are not always interchangeable.

For instance, you can’t use у when you want to indicate that something is near a person using a personal pronoun, such as ‘у меня/него/неё/них’ because it means ‘I/he/she/they have.’ Therefore, it implies possession rather than place.

But you can perfectly say ‘рядом со мной‘ (next to me), ‘возле меня‘ (near me) or ‘около него‘ (near him), indicating the place. It makes total sense.

Examples:

Кафе находится около парка. – The café is near the park.

Мой дом находится около центрального вокзала. – My house is near the central train station.

Банк находится рядом с больницей. – The bank is next to the hospital.

Магазин находится рядом с метро. – The shop is next to the subway.

Школа находится возле театра. – The school is beside the theater.

Кинотеатр находится около торгового центра. -The cinema is near the shopping center.

Библиотека находится около университета. – The library is near the university.

So, you need to be very careful when trying to translate Russian sentences with prepositions. You should pay close attention to the context. There are thousands of different situations and exceptions. Even if you memorize the rules, you might still miss something because rules may not apply in certain situations.

Между (between)

The preposition “между” (pronounced mezh-DOO) in Russian is used to indicate “between” in relation to two objects or entities. It is primarily used to express the position or location in the middle of two or more things.

Here are some examples of its usage:

Между домом и школой есть маленький парк. – There is a small park between the house and the school.

Он стоит между двумя деревьями. – He is standing between two trees.

Перед (in front of/before)

The preposition “перед” (pronounced per-ED) in Russian is used to indicate “in front of” or “before” when referring to a physical location or position. It implies that something or someone is situated in front of another object or in a forward position. Here are some examples:

Сад находится перед домом. – The garden is in front of the house.

Он стоит перед зеркалом. – He is standing in front of the mirror.

Я встал в очередь перед вами. – I got in line before you.

Машина остановилась перед светофором. – The car stopped in front of the traffic light.

In these sentences, “перед” indicates the location or position of something in front of another object, person, or reference point. It is used to describe the spatial relationship between two entities or to indicate a forward position.

See Also: Adverbs of Place and Movement in Russian

За (behind)

When indicating place, the preposition “за” can be used to indicate the location or position behind something.

Маша живет за парком. – Masha lives behind the park.

Они построили дом за рекой. – They built a house across the river.

Ресторан расположен за углом. – The restaurant is situated around the corner.

Детская площадка находится за школой. – The playground is behind the school.

Вечеринка будет проходить за городом. – The party will take place outside the city.

“За”, “перед” and “между” take the instrumental case.

You can learn prepositions of place by watching my video. They are very easy to understand.

 

Quick Test

Let’s test the knowledge we’ve gained. Here’s a quick test on prepositions of place in Russian.

Fill in the blanks with the appropriate preposition.

1. Книга лежит _____ (стол). [on]
2. Я живу _____ (Москва). [in]
3. Машина стоит _____ (дом). [near]
4. Собака спит _____ (стол). [under]
5. Сад находится ______ (забор). [behind]
6. Птица летит _____ (дерево). [above]
7. Ванная комната находится ______ (спальня) и (гостиная). [between]

Well done! Check your answers and see how many you got right. If it’s not enough for you, take another test.