Animals in Ukrainian: word list with pictures
60 words · tap 🔊 to hear each one in Ukrainian.
| Picture | English | Ukrainian | Say it | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Cow | корова | korova | |
 | Bull | бик | byk | |
 | Buffalo | буйвіл | buivil | |
 | Goat | коза | koza | |
 | Sheep | вівця | vivtsia | |
 | Horse | кінь | kin | |
 | Donkey | віслюк | visliuk | |
 | Camel | верблюд | verbliud | |
 | Pig | свиня | svynia | |
 | Yak | як | yak | |
 | Dog | собака | sobaka | |
 | Cat | кіт | kit | |
 | Rabbit | кролик | krolyk | |
 | Hamster | хом'ячок | khomiachok | |
 | Mouse | мишка | myshka | |
 | Elephant | слон | slon | |
 | Lion | лев | lev | |
 | Tiger | тигр | tyhr | |
 | Leopard | леопард | leopard | |
 | Bear | ведмідь | vedmid | |
 | Monkey | мавпа | mavpa | |
 | Gorilla | горила | horyla | |
 | Orangutan | орангутан | oranhutan | |
 | Deer | олень | olen | |
 | Zebra | зебра | zebra | |
 | Giraffe | жираф | zhyraf | |
 | Hippo | бегемот | behemot | |
 | Rhino | носоріг | nosorih | |
 | Fox | лисиця | lysytsia | |
 | Wolf | вовк | vovk | |
 | Jackal | шакал | shakal | |
 | Squirrel | білка | bilka | |
 | Mongoose | мангуст | manhust | |
 | Porcupine | дикобраз | dykobraz | |
 | Hedgehog | їжак | yizhak | |
 | Kangaroo | кенгуру | kenhuru | |
 | Koala | коала | koala | |
 | Panda | панда | panda | |
 | Polar Bear | білий ведмідь | bilyi vedmid | |
 | Sloth | лінивець | linyvets | |
 | Bat | кажан | kazhan | |
 | Wild Boar | кабан | kaban | |
 | Indian Bison | гаур | haur | |
 | Rat | щур | shchur | |
 | Fish | риба | ryba | |
 | Goldfish | золота рибка | zolota rybka | |
 | Frog | жаба | zhaba | |
 | Whale | кит | kyt | |
 | Dolphin | дельфін | delfin | |
 | Shark | акула | akula | |
 | Octopus | восьминіг | vosmynih | |
 | Crab | краб | krab | |
 | Prawn | креветка | krevetka | |
 | Squid | кальмар | kalmar | |
 | Seal | тюлень | tiulen | |
 | Jellyfish | медуза | meduza | |
 | Pufferfish | риба-їжак | ryba-yizhak | |
 | Otter | видра | vydra | |
 | Starfish | морська зірка | morska zirka | |
 | Seahorse | морський коник | morskyi konyk |
Animals in Ukrainian are a lovely way into the language, because Ukrainian folk tales and songs are full of clever foxes, kind hedgehogs and proud roosters. This page has 60 animals with pictures and clear audio: farm animals like корова (cow) and кінь (horse), pets such as собака (dog) and кіт (cat), forest and zoo animals from ведмідь (bear) to жираф, and sea animals including кит (whale) and восьминіг (octopus). Tap a picture to hear it in Ukrainian and English.
Farm animals and pets in Ukrainian
Start with свійські тварини, the domestic animals every child meets in books and villages: корова, бик, коза, вівця, кінь, свиня, віслюк (donkey). Then pets: собака, кіт, кролик, хом'ячок (hamster) and мишка. Notice the apostrophe in хом'ячок; it is a nice example to show an older child. The rooster, півень, is the picture word for П in the Ukrainian alphabet, and roosters appear often in Ukrainian folk art and painted pottery.
Forest animals and the tale of the Mitten
In the Ukrainian folk tale Рукавичка (The Mitten), an old man drops his mitten in the snowy forest. A mouse moves in, then a frog, a hare, a fox, a wolf, a wild boar and finally a bear, until the mitten bursts. Our cards include many of these animals: мишка, жаба (frog), лисиця (fox), вовк (wolf), кабан (wild boar) and ведмідь (bear). Tell the story and let your child tap each animal as it squeezes in. Other forest friends here are білка (squirrel), їжак (hedgehog) and олень (deer).
Zoo animals are often close to English: тигр, лев, леопард, зебра, жираф, горила, панда, коала, кенгуру. New ones to enjoy are слон (elephant), мавпа (monkey), бегемот (hippo), носоріг (rhino, "nose-horn") and лінивець (sloth, "the lazy one").
Sea and water animals in Ukrainian
Морські тварини include кит, дельфін, акула (shark), краб, медуза (jellyfish), тюлень (seal) and кальмар (squid). Some names paint a picture: морська зірка is "sea star", морський коник is "little sea horse" and the pufferfish is риба-їжак, "hedgehog fish". The octopus, восьминіг, literally means "eight-legs", a fun word to count with.
Animal sounds in Ukrainian
Ukrainian animals have their own voices. A dog says гав-гав, a cat няв or мяу, a cow му-у, a pig рох-рох, a duck кря-кря, a rooster кукуріку and a frog ква-ква. Ask "Як говорить котик?" ("How does the kitty talk?"), then compare with English in our animal sounds game.
Ukrainian animal names are their own
Families who hear both Ukrainian and Russian will notice that many animal names differ: cat is кіт (Russian кот), horse кінь, monkey мавпа (Russian обезьяна), fox лисиця and rat щур. Children can keep two languages apart well when each has its own person or place. The animals in Russian page is there if you want to compare.
How to teach animal names at home
- Five at a time. Choose five animals, play Listen, then Find it.
- Toy mitten. Use a real mitten or a sock and squeeze toy animals inside while telling Рукавичка.
- Move like animals. Hop like a заєць, stomp like a слон, curl up like a їжак.
- Ask where. "Де ведмідь?" ("Where is the bear?") with a picture book.
- Little names. Use loving forms like котик, зайчик, песик, just as Ukrainian grandparents do.
Worksheet idea: print this page from your browser and cut out the word list pictures for a matching game. There is no PDF, but the page prints cleanly.
At 2-3, children usually learn 5-10 animal names, mostly pets and farm animals. At 3-4, they name 15-20 and enjoy sorting them into forest, farm and sea. At 5-6, they may read short words like кіт, кит, лев, вовк. For English and Hindi names see animals name. Families abroad can make animal books a bedtime ritual in Ukrainian and ask grandparents to show their pets on video calls.
Тварини для дітей українською
На цій сторінці 60 тварин із малюнками та звуком: свійські тварини, лісові й дикі тварини та мешканці моря. Натисніть на малюнок, і дитина почує назву українською та англійською.
Прочитайте разом казку «Рукавичка», покажіть, як ховаються тварини, і повторюйте їхні голоси: гав-гав, няв, му-у, кукуріку. Так нові слова запам'ятовуються легко й весело.
How to use this page at home
Say it, then find it
Play for a few minutes, then look for the same thing away from the screen: ukrainian words on the shelf, in the kitchen, on the way to school. A child learns a word properly when they meet it twice, once on the screen and once in their hand.
Ten minutes is enough
Short and happy beats long and tired. Stop while your child still wants more, and come back tomorrow: the same page on five short days teaches far more than one long sitting. Nothing here is scored, so there is no reason to push.
Use both languages
Tap the language button at the top to hear the words in your home language first and the second language after. Hearing the same picture named in two languages is one of the few things research agrees builds attention as well as vocabulary.
