Ways to say it
| Russian | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| де́рево | dérevo | neuter | |
| древеси́на | drevesína | feminine | |
| лес | les | [lʲes] (narrow) | masculine |
| лесоматериа́л | lesomateriál | masculine |
Russian uses different words for wood depending on whether you mean a single plant, a material or a collection of trees. While де́рево can mean the substance 'wood', it is most commonly used to mean a single 'tree'. If you are talking about wood as a raw material, such as lumber or timber, use древеси́на. If you are referring to a wooded area or a collection of trees, use лес.
Which one should you use?
The choice of word depends on your specific meaning: де́рево is typically used for a single tree. древеси́на is used for the technical or material sense of wood as a substance for construction or fuel. And лес is a collective term used for a forest or a wooded area.
How does it change in a sentence?
де́рево is a neuter noun, древеси́на is a feminine noun, лес and лесоматериа́л are masculine nouns.
How do you pronounce it?
dérevo
Did you know?
- The word лес stems from the Proto-Slavic *lěsъ, meaning the exact same thing as the modern Russian word for a forest or collection of trees.
- Russian distinguishes between дерево for a single tree and лес for a collection of trees, but cannot use дерево in the plural to mean a forest.
- The word лес can refer to both a natural forest and the raw timber harvested from it for export or industry.
Examples in context
- В лесу было тихо.The wood was silent.This sentence shows the use of лес to describe a quiet wooded area.Tatoeba #12058838 by Wezel, translation #9199647 by sundown
- Есть путь через лес.There is a path through the wood.This sentence shows the use of лес to describe a path through a wooded area.Tatoeba #2830578 by odexed, translation #269494 by CK
- Он убежал в сторону леса.He ran away in the direction of the wood.This sentence shows the use of лес when describing movement toward a wooded area.Tatoeba #1868978 by marafon, translation #299953 by sundown
- Я люблю запах дерева в лесу.I love the smell of wood in the forest.
- Нам необходимо закупить больше древесины, чтобы завершить строительство.We need to purchase more wood to complete the construction.
- 11 more sentences on Tatoeba
Sources
- Wiktionary, “wood” translations and entries лес, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries лес, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
