This article is dedicated to a comparative analysis of the linguistic means of expressing empathy in English and Russian discourse from a linguocultural perspective. Empathic communication is examined as a complex, multilevel phenomenon conditioned by the national and cultural specificity of linguistic communities and reflecting the core values of their speakers. The paper analyzes the lexical, grammatical, and pragmatic means of realizing empathy in both languages, investigating their function in various t ypes of discourse: everyday, professional, and institutional. The methodological framework of the study is based on the principles of linguoculturology, communicative pragmatics, and discourse theory. Particular attention is paid to intercultural differenc es in the interpretation and realization of empathic utterances, which is of considerable importance for the theory and practice of intercultural communication. It is established that Russian-language discourse tends toward direct, emotionally charged expr essions of sympathy and involvement, whereas English -language discourse demonstrates a greater degree of conventionality, indirectness, and maintenance of communicative distance. The results contribute to the development of linguoculturology, pragmatics, a nd discourse theory, and may also have practical applications in foreign language teaching and intercultural communication training. empathic communication, linguoculturology, language and culture, communicative behavior, intercultural communication, pragmatics, discourse, national -cultural specificity, values.