Russian Cursive Щ щ (Shcha): How to Write It
By Daily Cyrillic · Updated
Cursive щ is cursive ш (three downstrokes joined at the bottom) with a small tail hooking below the baseline at the bottom right. Spot the tail and you have щ. A long, soft sh, like "sh" in "fresh sheets" held a little longer.
Reading time: about 1 min.
- Sound
- /ɕː/, written shch
- Letter name
- ща
- Often confused with
- ш, ц
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Sound
A long, soft sh, like "sh" in "fresh sheets" held a little longer.
How to write cursive щ, step by step
- Write the first two downstrokes exactly as in ш.
- Make the third downstroke and carry it below the baseline.
- Turn the end into a short hook or small loop.
- Come back up to the baseline and join the next letter.
The capital Щ
Capital Щ is a capital Ш with the same short descender added at the bottom right.
How it connects to other letters
Like ц, the tail is short enough to loop back up, so щ connects forward without lifting the pen.
Letters it is confused with
щ / ш: The only difference is the tail. Compare the endings of плащ (raincoat, with tail) and малыш (toddler, without).
щ / ц: Both have the tail, but ц has two downstrokes and щ has three.
Example words in cursive
Read the cursive word first, then check the print form and meaning.
| Cursive | Transliteration | Meaning | |
|---|---|---|---|
| щи | щи | shchi | cabbage soup |
| щётка | щётка | shchyótka | brush |
| борщ | борщ | borshch | borscht |
| плащ | плащ | plashch | raincoat |
Common mistakes
- Forgetting the tail, which silently changes the word.
- Pronouncing it as a hard "sh-ch" cluster instead of one long soft sound.
Turn this guide into words you can use
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