Good afternoon, dear student! My students and I began to study perhaps one of the most complex topics in the Russian language - verbs and their tenses. The fact is that in some languages of the world there are only a few tenses, but in Russian there are 3 of them - the past tense, the present and the future. In order to correctly understand and use them in your speech and writing, let’s look at all three tenses in more detail.
Present tense
Present tense verbs in Russian mean a real action that occurs in this moment, now, moreover, they can be conjugated, i.e. change your shape. Verbs in the present tense are one of the most changeable verbs, and in the imperfect form, it should be noted that verbs of the perfect form do not have a present tense, because the action has already been completed!Present tense verbs in Russian answer the question: what is he doing? For example,
Kate in a hurry to study Kate is in hurry on her way to work.
What is Katya doing? - she is in a hurry - she is now, at the moment she is in a hurry, which means the time is present.
Every a week parents are going to the dacha Every week parents go to dacha.
What are parents doing? - they are going, every a week shows us that the action occurs regularly, that is, in the present tense. Please always pay attention to keywords , they can serve as a hint for you which time to use at one time or another.
In the present tense form, the endings in the conjugation depend on their conjugation. If you have forgotten what conjugation is and whether it is worth learning, I recommend reading this topic. It will help you understand the difficulties when using present tense verbs.
Future
Very often my students get confused and don’t understand why there are so many different verbs in the future tense and how to remember it all. The fact is that the future tense in Russian shows us that the action has not taken place, we are planning to do something in the future, no matter whether it is near or far. Future tense verbs answer the questions:What will you do? What do we do? What will we do? What will you do? For example:
When will they start holidays, I I'll go to Moscow I will go to Moscow, when the holidays will come.
What will the holidays do? - will begin, they have not yet begun, this time has not come, which means we understand that the conversation is about the future time.
What will I do? - I’ll go, the person is not going anywhere yet, but he is already planning his trip to Moscow, which means we are talking about the future tense.
In Russian, there are two types of future tense; you can find, for example, the following verb:
I I'll draw this picture and I'll give it to you to my mom I will draw this picture and will present it to my Mom. What will I do? - I’ll draw it and give it to you as a gift
But you can also see this phrase, and it will also be in the future tense:
I am going to draw this picture tomorrow and will present it to my Mom.
What will I do? - I will draw, the action did not happen, he plans to do it, therefore this is the future tense.
But how then can you figure out which form should be used in a particular case? The fact is that verbs of the future tense can be simple and complex. Simple verbs in the future are formed from perfective verbs (which answer the questions: What will I do? What will you do?)
I’ll paint, clean, carry, say, sing- they all answer perfect questions. Where characteristic feature A way to help you remember this form is to add the letter -c at the beginning of the question:
What will I do? I'll clean it up
Complex verbs of the future tense are formed from imperfective verbs using the verb be+ the infinitive or the initial form of the verb - this is the form that is in the dictionary, open the Russian dictionary and see that the verb: I guessed right is in the infinitive form: guess.
Let's look at examples with complex verbs:
Ivan is going to watch a serial every day, as he is planning to pass the Russian language exam.
Verb " be" in turn changes according to persons:
I will (paint)
You will (paint)
They will (paint)
He/She will (paint)
We will (paint)
You will (paint)
Verbs in the future tense are inflected for persons and numbers, but genus it is impossible to determine in the future tense!
There are a number of verbs that do not form the 1st person singular form. Here are some of them:
Win To win
To convince
To feel
To find oneself in
When used, the word changes completely in the future tense, for example:
I can find myself in.. I will find myself in..
I can be convinced - I want to be convinced I want to convince
I can win - I will become the winner [Ya stanu pabeditelem] I will be the winner
Past tense
In previous articles I have already written about verb tenses, here I want to note only the main features that we did not touch on at the initial stage. Let's remember that the past tense answers the questions: what did you do? What did you do? What did you do? What did you do?Basically, past tense verbs are formed from indeterminate form verb (which is in the dictionary) and adding the suffix -l, for example:
Clean - clean L(what did you do?) to clean - was cleaning
Watch - look L(what did you do?) to look - looked
Knowing this rule, you will already have a hint and you will be able to form the past tense verb without problems. Depending on the gender, one or another ending may appear at the end:
Looked - looked - looked He looked- she looked- they looked
But there are verbs that are formed in the past form not according to this rule, for example, without adding the suffix -l in the masculine gender:
Carry - carried (masculine, past tense) to carry - was carrying, but in other forms of the gender: carried, carried they were carying, she was carrying.
When in the word goes alternation (when letters replace each other), for example, when forming the past form, the letters ch//g, ch//k can alternate in those verbs that end in -ch:
Stere whose- stereg (masculine gender, past tense: what did you do?) to watch over - was watching over, but in the feminine and plural the ending is added depending on the person: steregla, steregli she was watching over, they were watching over.
Please remember that we cannot determine the person of past tense verbs, only gender and number.
Verb tense expresses the relationship of the action denoted by the verb to the time of its implementation. Shapes stand out past, present And future tense.
In most cases, the use of tense forms is determined by the relationship to the moment of speech; This use of them is called absolute time.
In relatively rare cases, the starting point for the use of tenses is not the moment of speech, but other starting points, for example, the time of other actions reported in the speech. This is called the relative use of tenses. In additional (explanatory) subordinate clauses of a complex sentence, the tense of verbs is determined by their relation to the time of action of the main part:
My brother said that he had sent (sending, will send) the book I needed.
The grammatical reference point for time here is the verb of the main part “reported”, in relation to which the action of the verb of the subordinate part has been performed, is being performed or will be performed. “Wrote that he works”: the present tense of the verb “works” indicates the coincidence of the time of the action not with the moment of speech, but with the time of the action expressed by the verb “wrote”.
Imperfective verbs have all three forms of tense (I decide - I decided - I will decide).
Verbs of the perfect form, denoting actions limited by a limit, are used only in the past and future (simple) tense (decided - I will decide), and do not have a present tense.
Past tense denotes an action preceding the moment of speech. It is formed by adding a formative suffix to the base of the infinitive -l-: write - wrote, read - read, count - count.
When forming past tense forms, some features are observed:
If the stem of the past tense ends in g, k, x, z, s, b, then when forming a masculine verb, the suffix -l- falls out: guarded, baked, sokh, carried, carried, rowed, but is retained in the feminine and neuter gender, and also in the plural: guarded, baked, dried, carried, carried, guarded.
Verbs in - heret in the past tense they lose the second in the full vowel combination e, and in the masculine gender they do not have the suffix -l-: erase - erased, die - died.
Verb go and derivatives from it form the past tense from another stem - shed- with the loss of the root d: walked, walked, walked, came, came, came.
The past tense allows the verb to change in number. In turn, the singular number can easily be declined according to gender. It should also be noted that verbs in the past tense in the plural do not change according to persons.
Verbs in the form present time denote an action that occurs at the moment of speech, for example: I am looking for a meeting with you. Verbs in the present tense change according to persons and numbers.
From verbs perfect form present tense forms are not formed: the concept of completeness, effectiveness, characteristic of perfective verbs, is incompatible with the concept of present tense.
Only verbs have present tense forms imperfect form . These forms are formed using personal endings depending on whether the verb belongs to the I or II conjugation.
I conjugations: -u (-yu), -eat, -et, -eat, -ete, -ut (-ut)
II conjugations: -у (-yu), -ish, -it, -im, -ite, -at (-yat)
Example of verb I conjugation:
1st person → I’m walking, we’re walking
2nd person → you are walking, you are walking
3rd person → he is walking, they are walking
Example of verb II conjugation:
1st person → I drive, we carry
2nd person → you carry, you carry
3rd person → he carries, they carry
The present tense has the following basic meanings:
shows that the action expressed by the verb coincides with the moment of speech: The Caucasus is below me. Again the ancient coniferous forest rustles above me solemnly and wisely (V. Belov);
denotes a permanent, timeless action; The earth revolves around the sun.; In communicating vessels, the surface of the liquid is set at the same level;
denotes an action that turns into a property. Compare: a boy reads a book and student Petrov reads Pushkin well; Birds fly in the garden and swallows fly faster than sparrows.
is used instead of the past to give life to the story and make the reader (listener) seem to be a witness to the event being depicted: I was walking down the street yesterday and I saw. This is the so-called real narrative (pictorial, historical);
The present tense is used to mean the future if we're talking about about an action that must certainly take place; I'm taking my last exam tomorrow and going on vacation. The use of present tense forms in this function is usually characteristic of verbs of motion - run, go, go. Sometimes the forms of the present tense convey the picture imagined by the author: Another day of this accursed inferno - and here you have a hungry winter, typhus, cattle are dying, children are dying (A. N. Tolstoy).
Future denotes an action (process) that is upcoming or subsequent in relation to the moment of speech. It has two forms: synthetic (simple) and analytical (complex). These forms differ from each other both in their structure and in their meaning.
The synthetic form is characteristic of verbs of the perfect form (I will write, I will tell, I will read), the analytical form is characteristic of verbs of the imperfect form (I will write, I will tell, I will read).
The future tense of the analytical form is formed from the personal forms of the future tense of the verb be and an infinitive (necessarily imperfect form). Acting as a service component, auxiliary be forms with the infinitive one grammatical form.
The future complex always denotes an unlimited, limitless action that will take place after the moment of speech and cannot be used in the meaning of another time: We will continue to consistently defend the cause of peace.
The form of the future tense from perfective verbs is simple: it coincides with the present tense form of imperfective verbs: I will read, you will read, you will read, we will read, you will read, they will read; build, build, build, build, build.
Future synthetic form(from perfective verbs) has various meanings:
its main meaning is the expression of upcoming (future) actions that have a limit, completeness: We will obtain, understand and open everything: the cold pole and the blue arch (V. Lebedev-Kumach);
denotes an action that turns into the property: Whatever problem you give him, he will definitely solve it (you cannot say he solves or has solved). The future tense in this meaning is often used in proverbs: Tell the truth - the truth will help you out. On a crooked road you will break your legs.
denotes a repeated action (in descriptions next to the present one):
The storm covers the sky with darkness (present tense),
Whirling snow whirlwinds
The way she howls like a beast,
Then he will cry like a child (A. Pushkin);
with negation does not indicate the impossibility of action in the present: will not read quickly (cannot read quickly), will not say simply (cannot say simply), will not see at a far distance (cannot see at a far distance);
used in the past tense: During the day she mostly dozed. He sits in a chair in front of the table... and dozes (present tense). Then he will shudder, wake up, look out the window and for a long time, without any conscious thought, does not take his eyes off (present tense) from the endless distance stretching out (M. Saltykov-Shchedrin).
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How to determine the past tense of a verb? Answer to asked question you will get from the presented article. In addition, we will tell you how the past tense of a verb is formed in English.
General information about verbs
Before we talk about what the past tense of a verb is, we should find out what it even is.
A verb is a part of speech that denotes the state or action of an object, and also answers the questions “what to do?” or “what should I do?” It should be especially noted that they vary in mood, are transitive and intransitive, and can refer to the perfective or imperfective form.
Verb tenses in Russian
This part of speech can be used in the following tenses:
- the present;
- future;
- past.
Past tense of verb
The part of speech that stands in shows that this or that action has taken place up to the present moment. However, when describing past situations or events in life, the present tense is often used instead of the past tense.
How to form a verb in the past tense? Let's find out together
The past tense of a verb in Russian is formed from the initial form (that is, the infinitive) by adding the suffix -l- (ran, wanted, talked, helped, etc.). However, this rule has exceptions. Thus, verbs that are in the indefinite form, imperfective form and ending in -nit, -ti or -ch, are converted into the past tense (masculine singular) without using the above-mentioned suffix (cut - cut, etc.).
Do verbs in the past tense change?
The past tense of the verb allows the verb to change in number. In turn, the singular number can easily be declined according to gender. It should also be noted that verbs in the past tense in the plural do not change according to persons.
Forms of verbs in the past tense by meaning
Verbs in the past tense can have a perfect and aorist meaning (only the perfect form). Let's look at them in more detail:
Verbs in the past tense can have the following grammatical meanings(only imperfect form):
- An infinite single concrete action that was performed before the moment of speech. For example: Once under New Year the girls were guessing.
- An action that is repeated all the time until the moment of speech. For example: Annushka clasped her hands every time, and her eyes lit up with delight.
- An action that is constantly happening. For example: Impenetrable forests stretched almost all the way to the river.
- Generalized fact. For example: Someone asked you.
Past tense: English verbs
As mentioned above, the past tense is a form of a verb that indicates an action that has already been performed. In English, this change in words is called "Past Tenses". It should also be noted that such time differs in duration and quality. In other words, in English there is a simple past tense called "Past Simple", a continuous past tense called "Past Continuous", and a past perfect tense called "Past Perfect". Let's look at each of the forms in more detail.
Past Simple
This tense expresses absolutely any action that took place in the past. Past Simple is formed quite simply: if the word refers to irregular verb, then for this you need to take its second form from the table. If the verb is correct, then it is added to it. If it is necessary to pose a question, then the auxiliary word did should be used.
By the way, the past tense of the verb to be has 2 conjugations, namely were and was. As a rule, were is used with nouns only in the plural, and was - in the singular. In this case, with the pronoun you (translated as you or you) it is necessary to use only were.
Past Continuous
This form differs from the previous one in that in this case the action of the past is shown in process. As a cheat sheet, it is recommended to remember that the presented verb will have an imperfect form. It should also be noted that to form the Past Continuous, only knowledge of the following forms of the verb to be is required: were and was.
Past Perfect or perfect continuous past tense
To form such a time, perfect knowledge of all forms and correct ones will be required). It should also be noted that for the Past Perfect it is necessary to have. By the way, the past tense has the following form: had.
It should also be noted that the Past Perfect also includes such a time as the Past Perfect Continuous, which has the following Russian meaning: perfect continuous past tense. To form it, you must use to be, which should be put in the Past Perfect form, that is, had been.
Let's sum it up
Knowing the basics of the formation of past tense verbs in Russian and English languages, you will be able not only to correctly deliver your speech during personal communication with foreigners or your compatriots, but also to write them a competent letter.
The present
The present tense has several functions in Russian. The first is to determine the permanent properties of an object or person. For example, “Water boils at 100 degrees.” Secondly, the present tense serves to express potential possibilities. For example, “A cheetah reaches speeds of more than one hundred kilometers per hour.” Thirdly, it records the action at the moment of its commission. To the question: “What are you doing now?”, you can answer: “Reading a book,” “Washing the dishes,” etc. The fourth functional feature of the present tense is the nomination of an action that is repeated from time to time, constantly, periodically, sometimes, etc. As an example, “I go to school”, “Auntie is watching a TV series”, “They meet with friends on Saturdays”. There is another transpositional property of a verb in the present tense - the transmission of thoughts directed to the future by forms of the present. This time is called the present in the future. For example, the verb “I’m going” in the context: “I’m going to Paris.”
The future tense in Russian expresses an action that will take place after the moment of speech. According to the method of formation, it is divided into simple and complex. Simple tense is formed with the help of affixes (suffixes and endings) according to their inflectional class. For example, “I’ll read”, “I’ll translate”, “I’ll go”. The complex tense additionally uses the verb “to be” to form the form. When conjugating a verb in the future tense, only the form of the additional verb changes - “I will dream”, “you will dream”, “he/she will dream”, “we will dream”, “you will dream” and “they will dream”.
The future tense can have a variety of meanings and purposes. It is used very often in proverbs and sayings. For example, “As it comes around, so it will respond.” The future simple can function in the present: “I just can’t understand what’s wrong with it,” “I can’t find the keys.” With the same success, the future is present in terms of the past tense: “It used to be that he would sit down, take the button accordion in his hands and begin to sing a sad song.”
Past
The past tense is not subject to such temporal transpositions. It expresses the action that preceded the moment of speech. Formation depends on whether the verb is perfect or imperfect. The imperfect past expresses an action as a fact: “walked,” “dozed,” “fought.”
The completed action, firstly, states the completion of the process: “went away”, “dozed off”. Secondly, it determines the order of the actions taken: “First I woke up, washed my face, and went to work.” The third function of the past perfect consolidates the result of a past action in the present: “I watched this film and now I can talk about it.” Repeatability and repetition are characteristic of both the perfect and imperfect past.
A verb is an expression of action. The category of time is an expression of how an action relates to the moment of speech. It is customary to distinguish three forms of time. To determine the relationship of a verb to the present, future or past tense, it is usually enough to ask a question. But there are verb forms that need to be analyzed more deeply. Let us highlight some features - they will help to distinguish temporary forms.
Present tenseThis category is used to indicate a certain action:
- happening at a specific moment, i.e. moment of speech ( I am reading a book);
- happening regularly ( I read books);
- happening all the time ( I work as a builder).
The present tense verb is often used in figurative meaning, expressing the near future. We we're leaving Tomorrow. It is interesting to use present tense verbs in literary texts telling about historical events, which gives the narration a special liveliness. Swede, Russian – stabs, chops, cuts.
The forms of verbs in the present tense are synthetic (consist of one word), the differences are determined by changing the verb itself in persons and numbers. I run, you run, he (she, it) runs. We are sitting, you are sitting, they are sitting.
- Facts may be mentioned without specifying the duration of the action. For this purpose, imperfective verbs are used (“what did you do?”). I attended lectures.
- If we mean an action that ended at the time of speech, or describe actions that succeeded each other, this is a perfective verb (“what did you do?”). I attended the lectures, had lunch and went to the meeting.
- If the particle was is attached to the verb, this is an indication of an action that did not take place or was prevented in the past. I wanted to leave, but they asked me to stay.
- suffix -l-
(did is a masculine form with a zero ending);
- for the feminine gender an ending is added -A
(did); for neuter gender – ending -O
(did); For plural- ending -And
, common to all genera ( did).
- verbs whose stems (infinitive and present tense) end in h
And With
(crawl - crawled, carry - carried);
- verbs with stem endings in g and k (in the present tense), with an infinitive in -whose
(shore - take care - shore, bake - oven - bake);
- verbs whose infinitive contains a combination -ere-
, but in the present tense it is not ( rub - rub - rub);
- the verb to grow, which in the past tense has a special form grew;
- verbs like scrape, row, the basis of which in the past tense coincides with the basis of the present ( scrape - scrape, row - row);
- stative verbs with suffix -Well-
, in the past tense without this suffix ( disappear - disappeared, perish - died).
There are forms with the meaning of suddenness of action, which at first glance do not belong to the past tense. The fact is that such verbs are identical in form to verbs of the perfect singular form in imperative mood. He take it Yes come at the most inopportune time. Compare: take it and come. Through such forms the desirability of an action that has not been performed can be expressed. Come If you had earlier, you would have found him at home. Compare: if you had come earlier.
IN artistic speech There may be forms that are used to denote a repeated action that occurred a long time ago and for some time. This is a category of long past tense. I'm often at the table with them sat. This is not the case in life seen.
Future
This category serves to designate an action that will take place after the moment of speech ( I will read a book, I will write poetry). In the imperfect form (“what will I do?”), the future tense has an analytical, compound form - the verb “to be” plus the infinitive. Synthetic, simple form (“what will I do?”) I'll read it is formed only by inflection.
A verb in the simple future tense can express time without relation to the moment of speech, acquiring the following meanings:
- continuously repeated action then it will stop, then it will rush again);
- a common action in the past ( no, no, yes, he will look out the window);
- sudden, rapid action in the past ( when he starts screaming).