сколько тебе лет
skol'ko tebe let
The Russian phrase for "how old you are" is сколько тебе лет (skol'ko tebe let).
This phrase is used to ask or state a person's age. When stating your own age in Russian, you use the word Мне (mne), which literally translates to "to me," to mean "I am" or "I have" in the context of age. For example, you might say мне уже за пятьдесят to mean "I'm already over fifty."
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase сколько тебе лет literally translates to "how many years [to] you".
How does it change in a sentence?
You can adapt this phrase by changing the pronoun to refer to different people: use сколько ему лет for "how old he is", сколько ей лет for "how old she is" and сколько им лет for "how old they are". To ask about the past, such as "how old you were", add the past tense verb было to create сколько тебе было лет.
How do you pronounce it?
skol'ko tebe let
Did you know?
- To ask a stranger or a superior their age, you must replace тебе with вам, as using the former would be seen as an aggressive or rude imposition.
- Russian has a specific word лето for 'summer' which is visually and phonetically almost identical to лет, the word used for 'years' in this phrase.
- The word сколько shares a common Proto-Slavic ancestor with the word koliko, which is still used to ask 'how many' in Serbian and Croatian.
Examples in context
- Я знаю, сколько тебе лет.I know how old you are.This sentence is useful for expressing knowledge of someone's age using сколько тебе лет.Tatoeba #2344746 by marafon, translation #252682 by CK
- Неважно, сколько тебе лет.It doesn't matter how old you are.This sentence is useful for expressing that a person's age does not matter using сколько тебе лет.Tatoeba #4485229 by marafon, translation #3390831 by Hybrid
- Скажи мне, сколько тебе лет.Tell me how old you are.This sentence is useful for requesting someone to state their age using сколько тебе лет.Tatoeba #6404533 by marafon, translation #6403827 by CK
- Мне три годика.I am three years old.
- 12 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are chatting casually at a cafe.
- Сергей SergeyТы не хочешь сказать, сколько тебе лет?Ty ne khochesh' skazat', skol'ko tebe let?You don't want to say how old you are?
- Екатерина EkaterinaДа, я не хочу об этом говорить.Da, ya ne khochu ob etom govorit'.Yes, I don't want to talk about it.
- Сергей SergeyХорошо, я не буду спрашивать.Khorosho, ya ne budu sprashivat'.Okay, I won't ask.
- Екатерина EkaterinaСпасибо за понимание, Сергей.Spasibo za ponimaniye, Sergey.Thanks for understanding, Sergey.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries лет, сколько, тебе, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
