How to Say "It Hurts" in Russian

больно

bol'no

The phrase for "it hurts" in Russian is больно (bol'no).

The phrase Мне больно is the standard way to express that you are currently in pain.

Which one should you use?

If you want to say "it hurts," use the adverb больно. If you wish to refer to "the pain" itself as a noun, use боль.

To say "it hurts me", you use the dative case for the person experiencing the pain.

bol'no

English speakers often mistakenly use the nominative Я (I) instead of the dative Мне (to me) when expressing pain.

The word больно is often used as an intensifier similar to 'very' or 'extremely' in colloquial speech, such as saying something is больно красиво to mean 'painfully beautiful'.
The Russian word for 'aching' pain, ноющая, is derived from the verb ныть, which means 'to whine' or 'to moan'.
While больно describes physical pain, the word боль can be used in the phrase больница, which means 'hospital'.

Мне от этого больно.
It hurts me.
This sentence is useful for saying that a specific thing is causing you pain.
Tatoeba #13035400 by marafon, translation #12676822 by Aghanim
Скажи мне, где больно.
Tell me where it hurts.
This sentence is useful for asking someone to identify the location of their pain.
Tatoeba #7166297 by marafon, translation #5336520 by mailohilohi
Покажи мне, где больно.
Show me where it hurts.
This sentence is useful for asking someone to point to where they feel pain.
Tatoeba #818957 by FeuDRenais, translation #2234198 by lutao
У меня болит голова.
I have a headache.
Колет в животе.
There's a stabbing pain in my stomach.
30 more sentences on Tatoeba

Alexander is helping Olga after she bumped her arm.

Александр Aleksandr

Что случилось?
Shto sluchilos?
What happened?
Ольга Olga

Я ударилась, мне очень больно.
Ya udarilas, mne ochen' bol'no.
I bumped myself, it hurts a lot.
Александр Aleksandr

Где именно больно?
Gde imenno bol'no?
Where exactly does it hurt?
Ольга Olga

Больно здесь, на руке.
Bol'no zdes', na ruke.
It hurts here, on my arm.

Sources

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