How old are you? in Russian: How to say?

Asking How old are you? in Russian depends on who you are talking to, whether it is a formal or informal situation:

– Ско́лько тебе́ лет?
[skól’-ka tee-byé lyet]
How old are you? (informal)

– Ско́лько вам лет?
[skól’-ka vam lyet]
How old are you? (formal)

Keep in mind, that some people can find it not polite to ask a woman about her age. To make your question a bit more polite, you can ask:

– Ско́лько вам лет, е́сли не секре́т?
[skól’-ka vam lyet, yés-lee nye seek-ryét]
How old are you, if it’s not a secret? (formal)

Or:

– Мо́жно спроси́ть, ско́лько тебе́ лет?
[mózh-na spra-séet’, skól’-ka tee-byé lyet]
May I ask how old you are? (informal)

To understand the answer, you need to know Russian numbers. Here are some possible answers:

– Мне два́дцать лет.
[mnye dvá-tsat’ lyet]
I’m twenty years old.

– Мне три́дцать четы́ре го́да.
[mnye trée-tsat’ chee-tý-rye gó-da]
I’m 34 old.

– Со́рок во́семь.
[só-rak vó-seem’]
Fourty eight.

– Два́дцать оди́н год.
[mnye dvá-tsat’ a-déen got]
I’m twenty one.

Pay attention that the form of the word years in the answer (лет / го́да / год) depends on the number itself. You can learn more about it here: counting in Russian.