кью
k'yu
The English letter 'q' is written in Russian as кью (k'yu).
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is k'yu.
Did you know?
- While кью represents the English letter, the Russian alphabet does not actually contain the letter 'q' or its sound. To represent foreign words containing 'q', Russians typically substitute it with the letter к.
- In technical contexts like programming or mathematics, Russian speakers will say кью to refer to a variable 'q' to avoid confusion with the Russian letter к.
- In Russian, names of letters are usually just the sound they make, but кью is a phonetic loanword specifically designed to mimic English pronunciation.
Example conversation
Andrey and Ekaterina are spelling a word together.
- Андрей AndreyКакая здесь буква?Kakaya zdes' bukva?Which letter is here?
- Екатерина EkaterinaЭто буква кью.Eto bukva k'yu.It is the letter Q.
- Андрей AndreyПонятно, спасибо, Екатерина.Ponyatno, spasibo, Ekaterina.I see, thanks, Ekaterina.
- Екатерина EkaterinaПожалуйста, Андрей.Pozhaluysta, Andrey.You're welcome, Andrey.
