Ways to say it
| Russian | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| назва́ние | nazvánije | neuter |
| загла́вие | zaglávije | neuter |
| наименова́ние | naimenovánije | neuter |
| заголо́вок | zagolóvok | masculine |
In Russian, the word you choose for 'title' depends heavily on what kind of title you are referring to.
Which one should you use?
The different forms are used for specific purposes: назва́ние is the common way to refer to the name of a thing, such as a book, a movie or a company. загла́вие is used specifically for the title of a literary work or a piece of music. заголо́вок refers to a heading in a text or a headline in a newspaper. Finally, наименова́ние is used as a formal designation or name for an entity or item.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
For formal contexts, заголо́вок is used for titles of books, articles or document sections. If you are referring to a prestigious or honorific title, use Титул. In official, legal or highly formal settings, use наименова́ние to refer to the formal name of an entity or item. Additionally, when referring to a job title or position, the word должность is used.
How does it change in a sentence?
The neuter noun назва́ние has the plural form назва́ния. For the masculine noun заголо́вок, the genitive form is заголо́вка, which is used when saying something like 'the title of the article'.
How do you pronounce it?
nazvánije
When do people say it?
When using titles for people, господин is used as a title before a surname to translate 'Mr.', while госпожа is used as a title before a surname to translate 'Mrs.' or 'Ms.'
Did you know?
- Unlike English, where 'title' can refer to a legal deed of ownership for a house, Russian uses право собственности meaning 'right of ownership'.
- When referring to honorific titles like 'Mr.' or 'Mrs.', Russian uses господин and госпожа, which are derived from the word for 'master' or 'lord'.
- In a Russian grocery store, you might see the word наименова́ние on a receipt to list products, even though it is a highly formal term for 'designation'.
Examples in context
- введите заголовокEnter the title
- высокий титулHigh title
- новое название фильмаNew movie title
- книга без названияBook without a title
- главный редакторChief editor
Sources
- Wiktionary, “title” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
