How to address a Russian if you don't know their name
1. Извините (Izvinite) & Прошу прощения (Proshu prosheniya) “Izvinite” and “Proshu prosheniya” are basically the Russian version of “Excuse me” and are used a lot if one wants to ask someone for a small favor. These are interchangeable and can basically help with any kind of request offering probably the safest and formal option there is, if one is not sure how to address another person.
2. Молодой человек (Molodoy chelovek) & Девушка (Devushka) “Molodoy chelovek” can be translated as “young man.” In public transport, a guy might hear something like “Molodoy chelovek, dayte prisest” (Young man, let me sit) or “Molodoy chelovek, u vas upalo” (Young man, you’ve lost something) if his wallet fell out of his pocket.
3. Мужчина (Muzhchina) & Женщина (Zhenshina) “Muzhchina” (Man) and “Zhenshina” (Womаn) is a less courteous way to address a man or a woman, but is also quite acceptable and commonly used. “Muzhchina, ne zaderjivayte ochered!” (Sir, don’t hold the queue!) or “Zhenshina, vi zabyli sumku!” (Lady, you’ve left your bag!) are a couple of examples.
4. Девочка (Devochka) & Мальчик (Malchik) “Devochka” (Girl) and “Malchik” (Boy) are commonly used when addressing kids: “Devochka, ne trogay sobaku!” (Girl, don’t touch the dog!) or “Malchik, ti pateryalsya?” (Boy, are you lost?). 5. Уважаемый/-ая/-ые (Uvazhayemy/-aya/-iye) “Uvazhayemy” (Respected, honorable) for a man, “uvazhayemaya” for a woman or “uvazhayemiye” for a group of people. In speech “uvazhayemy” can sometimes have an ironic meaning, if one pronounces it with the right emotion. “Uvazhayemy, propustite!” (Respected, let me through) for instance, when a Russian is annoyed with someone, but doesn’t want to clearly offend a person.
Товарищ
Most commonly used in Soviet times “tovarish” (comrade) survived the collapse of the USSR and is still appropriate in modern Russian conversation. It’s a bit less formal than “uvazhayemy” and can be appropriate to address a man (tovarish) or a group of people (tovarishi). Коллеги “Kollegi” (colleagues) is a safe, formal and neutral way to address a team at work - in speech or online. “Kollegi, mojno potishe!” (Colleagues, be quiet!), “Kollegi, pitsa na kukhne! Ugoshaytes!” (Colleague, pizza is in the kitchen! Enjoy!) or “Kollegi, spasibo za pozdravleniya” (Colleagues, thank you for your wishes) - it basically works in any situation.
Друг or брат
If a guy is pretty confident in himself and wants to address his mates, he can call a friend “drug” (friend) or “brat” (bro). Such informal conversation-starter basically kills any kind of distance between the two and instantly builds a connection.
Эй, ты
An even more informal and rather aggressive way to call someone is “Ei, ti” (Hey, you) - a Russian might say “Ei, ti, chto ty tam delaesh?” (Hey, you, what are you doing there?) when he or she sees someone robbing a car, for example, or “Ei, ty, stoy gde stoish” (Hey, you, don’t move) if he or she wants to warn someone to not move any closer.
