Russian Cursive П п (Pe): How to Write It
By Daily Cyrillic · Updated
Cursive п looks like a handwritten Latin n: a downstroke, then an arch over the top and a second downstroke. Capital П looks like a script T with a second leg, similar to the Greek π. A "p" as in "spin", without the puff of air of English p.
Reading time: about 2 min.
- Sound
- /p/, written p
- Letter name
- пэ
- Often confused with
- и, т, н
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Sound
A "p" as in "spin", without the puff of air of English p.
How to write cursive п, step by step
- Start at the baseline and go up to the x-height.
- Come straight down the first slanted stroke to the baseline.
- Retrace upward and arch over to the right at the x-height.
- Come down the second stroke and exit with a small hook to the right.
The capital П
Capital П is a wavy top bar with two slanted legs hanging from it, often with a small curl at the foot of the left leg. It looks like a cursive T with an extra leg.
How it connects to other letters
п joins from the baseline on both sides like и, so in words such as папа the strokes form an even rhythm of arches.
Letters it is confused with
п / и: Turn и upside down and you get п. и is rounded at the bottom, п is rounded at the top.
п / т: Lowercase т is three arches like an English m; п is two arches like an English n.
п / н: н has a crossbar in the middle instead of an arch at the top.
Example words in cursive
Read the cursive word first, then check the print form and meaning.
| Cursive | Transliteration | Meaning | |
|---|---|---|---|
| пол | пол | pol | floor |
| суп | суп | sup | soup |
| письмо | письмо | pis'mó | letter (mail) |
| парк | парк | park | park |
Common mistakes
- Writing the printed П with flat top and corners, which slows you down and looks like a box.
- Reading the n-shape as the sound n: in cursive it is always п.
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