The Russian past tense describes situations and events that happened before the time of speaking. Russian perfective and imperfective verbs follow the same (and pretty simple!) rules when it comes to their past forms, but serve different uses and meanings. What are these forms? What is the difference between perfective and imperfective verbs in the past tense in Russian? Let’s find out!
How to form past tense verbs in Russian?
In comparison with present and future tenses, the Russian past tense is fairly straightforward to form. All you need to do is to take the infinitive of a verb, cut off the final -ть and add one of four endings depending on the subject of a sentence:
| Singular masculine | -л |
|---|---|
| Singular feminine | -ла |
| Singular neuter | -ло |
| Plural (all genders) | -ли |
The past forms of Russian verbs are the same for perfective and imperfective verbs. For example:
| Aspect | Infinitive | Masculine singular | Feminine singular | Neuter singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Perfective | сказать Transcription: skaZAT Translation: to say | сказал Transcription: skaZAL | сказала Transcription: skaZAla | сказало Transcription: skaZAla | сказали Transcription: skaZAli |
принять Transcription: priNYAT Translation: to accept | принял Transcription: PREEnil | приняла Transcription: priniLA | приняло Transcription: PREEnila | приняли Transcription: PREEnili | |
Imperfective | хотеть Transcription: khaTYET Translation: to want | хотел Transcription: khaTYEL | хотела Transcription: khaTYEla | хотело Transcription: khaTYEla | хотели Transcription: khaTYEli |
жить Transcription: zhyt Translation: to live | жил Transcription: zhyl | жила Transcription: zhyLA | жило Transcription: ZHYla | жили Transcription: ZHYli |
Reflexive verbs follow the same rule to form their past tense, but because -ть in their infinitive comes before the reflexive suffix -ся/-сь, the past endings will also go before -ся/-сь, for example:
| Aspect | Infinitive | Masculine singular | Feminine singular | Neuter singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Perfective | одеться Transcription: aDYEtsa Translation: to get dressed | оделся Transcription: aDYELsya | оделась Transcription: aDYElas | оделось Transcription: aDYElas | оделись Transcription: aDYElis |
Imperfective | бояться Transcription: baYAtsa Translation: to be afraid | боялся Transcription: baYALsya | боялась Transcription: baYAlas | боялось Transcription: baYAlas | боялись Transcription: baYAlis |
Russian wouldn’t be Russian, however, if there weren’t a few exceptions 🙂:
Some verbs (but not all!) with infinitives ending with -нуть and -ти have a singular masculine form with a zero ending instead of -л. For example:
нестиTranscription: nisTEETranslation: to carry→
он нёс transcribed on nyosmeaning he carriedона несла transcribed aNA nisLAmeaning she carriedоно несло transcribed aNO nisLOmeaning it carriedони несли transcribed aNEE nisLEEmeaning they carriedтрястиTranscription: trisTEETranslation: to shake→
он тряс transcribed on tryasmeaning he shookона трясла transcribed aNA trisLAmeaning she shookоно трясло transcribed aNO trisLOmeaning it shookони трясли transcribed aNEE trisLEEmeaning they shookослепнутьTranscription: aSLYEPnootTranslation: to go blind→
он ослеп transcribed on aSLYEPmeaning he went blindона ослепла transcribed aNA aSLYEPlameaning she went blindоно ослепло transcribed aNO aSLYEPlameaning it went blindони ослепли transcribed aNEE aSLYEPlimeaning they went blindпогибнутьTranscription: paGEEBnootTranslation: to die→
он погиб transcribed on paGEEPmeaning he diedона погибла transcribed aNA paGEEBlameaning she diedоно погибло transcribed aNO paGEEBlameaning it diedони погибли transcribed aNEE paGEEBlimeaning they diedVerbs with infinitives that end with -чь also have a singular masculine form with a zero ending instead of -л, AND -ч- should be replaced in all forms by -к- or -г-, for example:
мочьTranscription: mochTranslation: can→
он мог transcribed on mokmeaning he couldона могла transcribed aNA magLAmeaning she couldоно могло transcribed aNO magLOmeaning it couldони могли transcribed aNEE magLEEmeaning they couldотвлечьTranscription: atVLYECHTranslation: to distract→
он отвлёк transcribed on atVLYOKmeaning he distractedона отвлекла transcribed aNA atvlikLAmeaning she distractedоно отвлекло transcribed aNO atvlikLOmeaning it distractedони отвлекли transcribed aNEE atvlikLEEmeaning they distractedSome Russian verbs (and the verbs derived from them) have unique irregular forms in the past tense that can only be explained historically, for example:
идтиTranscription: iTEETranslation: to go→
он шёл transcribed on sholmeaning he wentона шла transcribed aNA shlameaning she wentоно шло transcribed aNO shlomeaning it wentони шли transcribed aNEE shleemeaning they wentестьTranscription: yestTranslation: to eat→
он ел transcribed on yelmeaning he ateона ела transcribed aNA YElameaning she ateоно ело transcribed aNO YElameaning it ateони ели transcribed aNEE YEleemeaning they ate
Now that we have learned how to make past forms of Russian verbs, let’s find out how to use them.
How to use the past tense in Russian?
In Russian, we use the past tense to talk about any action that took place before the moment of speech. What makes this tense tricky, though, is determining whether you should use a perfective or imperfective verb in the past tense.
As a rule, perfective verbs are generally used for completed actions while imperfective verbs refer to repeated actions and actions in progress. Thus, perfective and imperfective verbs serve different kinds of meanings and are used in different types of situations in the past.
When to use imperfective verbs in the past tense?
Imperfective verbs have a number of uses in the past, all characterized by focus on duration (as opposed to the result) or repetition (as opposed to an individual action). Let’s take a closer look at each of these uses.
To state a fact or generalization
Imperfective verbs are used in the past tense to state a fact or make a generalization resulting from a past action.
In this meaning they are often accompanied by the adverbs никогда transcribed nikagDAmeaning never, когда-нибудь transcribed kagDAnibootmeaning ever, раньше transcribed RANshemeaning before, уже transcribed ooZHEmeaning already, and they are usually translated into English with the “have done” structure, for example:
imperfective pastЯ уже где-то слышала эту песню.Transcription: ya ooZHE GDYEta SLYshala Etoo PYESnyuTranslation: I have already heard this song somewhere.Их сыновья раньше занимались карате.Transcription: eekh synavYA RANshe zaniMAlis karaTETranslation: Their sons used to do karate.Вы когда-нибудь ели щи?Transcription: vy kagDAniboot YEli shcheeTranslation: Have you ever eaten shchi (cabbage soup)?Мы никогда не играли в одной команде.Transcription: my nikagDA ni igRAli v adNOY kaMANdyeTranslation: We have never played on one team.To talk about an action in progress at a certain time and simultaneous actions
Imperfective verbs are used to describe actions that were ongoing at a certain time in the past, similarly to the English “was/were doing” structure in a situation like, “I was cooking at 5 pm yesterday.”
imperfective pastЕщё вчера в это время мы загорали на пляже.Transcription: yiSHCHO fchiRA v Eta VRYEmya my zagaRAli na PLYAzheTranslation: Just yesterday at this time we were sunbathing on the beach.Я работал в саду, когда ты позвонил.Transcription: ya raBOtal f saDOO kagDA ty pazvaNEELTranslation: I was working in the garden when you called.The interrupting action (“you called”) is perfective. We’ll discuss this more below.When you are describing several actions happening all at the same time, you should use imperfective verbs as well. For example:
imperfective pastВчера в 9 вечера нас не было дома, мы смотрели балет в театре.Transcription: fchiRA v DYEvit VYEchira nas NYE byla DOma MY smaTRYEli baLYET f TYATryeTranslation: Yesterday at 9 pm we weren’t home, we were watching ballet at the theater.Ваня сидел на диване, читал книгу и ел чипсы.Transcription: VAnya siDYEL na diVAnye chiTAL KNEEgoo i yel CHEEPsyTranslation: Vanya was sitting on the couch, reading a book, and eating potato chips.To talk about an action with a specific duration
When you want to stress how long an action or situation in the past lasted, you’ll need imperfective verbs in their past forms in Russian, for example:
imperfective pastВо вторник с 3 до 5 я помогала подруге с переездом.Transcription: va FTORnik c tryokh da piTEE ya pamaGAla padROOgye c piriYEZdamTranslation: On Tuesday from 3 to 5 I was helping a friend move.Пока ты спал, я читала.Transcription: paKA ty spal ya chiTAlaTranslation: While you were sleeping I was reading.Он два часа собирал вещи, и в итоге опоздал на самолёт.Transcription: on dva chiSA sabiRAL VYEshchi i v iTOgye apaZDAL na samaLYOTTranslation: He was packing for two hours, and as a result was late for his flight.To talk about habitual actions
When describing regular, repeated, or habitual past activities, imperfective verbs should be used in Russian, for instance:
imperfective pastМы в детстве много играли на улице.Transcription: my v DYETStvye MNOga igRAli na OOlitseTranslation: As children, we used to play outside a lot.Где вы занимались карате?Transcription: gdye vy zaniMAlis karaTETranslation: Where did you practice karate?На Новый год мама всегда готовила пельмени.Transcription: na NOvyi got MAma fsigDA gaTOvila pilMYEniTranslation: For New Years, Mom always made pelmeni (meat dumplings).To describe unattempted actions
When you want to say that some action in the past didn’t take place and wasn’t even attempted, you usually need an imperfective verb, for example:
imperfective pastЯ не нажимала эту кнопку.Transcription: ya ni nazhyMAla Etoo KNOPkooTranslation: I didn’t press this button.Мы не заказывали такой услуги.Transcription: my ni zaKAzyvali taKOY oosLOOgiTranslation: We didn’t order such service.Он не просил тебя ему помогать.Transcription: on ni praSEEL tiBYA yiMOO pamaGATTranslation: He didn’t ask you to help him.To talk about repeatedly attempted but failed actions
When the action was attempted repeatedly but still failed, Russians tend to use imperfective verbs in the past too, for instance:
imperfective pastЯ им и писал, и звонил, но никакого ответа не получил.Transcription: ya eem i piSAL i zvaNEEL no nikaKOva atVYEta ni palooCHEELTranslation: I wrote to them, I called them, but got no answer.Тебя искала какая-то женщина.Transcription: tiBYA isKAla kaKAyata ZHENshchinaTranslation: Some woman was looking for you.Они кричали, но она их слышала.Transcription: aNEE kriCHAli no aNA eekh ni SLYshalaTranslation: They were shouting but she didn’t hear them.Note that in all the sentences above, we understand that the action was attempted and failed multiple times. If only one attempt was made, you’ll want to use a perfective verb instead (see below).
When to use perfective verbs in the past tense?
Perfective verbs generally tend to have an emphasis on the result of a finished action, and refer to an individual completed action. Thus, perfective verbs have a number of meanings and uses in the past described below.
For completed actions or a series of completed actions
When the focus is on the fact that the action is completed, and you're more concerned with the fact that it happened than the process, you need to use perfective verbs. For example:
perfective pastМы купили дом в прошлом году.Transcription: my kooPEEli dom f PROSHlam gaDOOTranslation: We bought a house last year.Где ты потерял свой кошелёк?Transcription: gdye ty patiRYAL svoy kashyLYOKTranslation: Where did you lose your wallet?The same goes for describing a series of completed actions, when one action happens after another.
perfective pastОна поела, помыла посуду, посмотрела телевизор, приняла душ и легла спать.Transcription: aNA paYEla paMYla paSOOdoo pasmaTRYEla tiliVEEzar priniLA doosh i ligLA spatTranslation: She ate, did the dishes, watched TV, took a shower, and went to bed.To talk about a result in the present
Perfective verbs can also be used in Russian in situations when the result of a past action is emphasized in the present, for example:
perfective pastМама, посмотри какую я картину нарисовал!Transcription: MAma pasmatREE kaKOOyu ya karTEEnoo narisaVALTranslation: Mom, look what a picture I’ve painted!Ты встала?Transcription: ty FSTAlaTranslation: Have you gotten up?Мою машину уже отремонтировали?Transcription: maYU maSHYnoo ooZHE atrimanTEEravaliTranslation: Has my car been fixed yet?To introduce a direct quote
The verbs that introduce direct speech, such as сказать transcribed skaZATmeaning to say, спросить transcribed spraSEETmeaning to ask, подумать transcribed paDOOmatmeaning to think, are mostly perfective verbs in Russian, used in their past forms, for example:
perfective pastЯ спросила: “Где вы научились так вкусно готовить?”Transcription: ya spraSEEla gdye vy naooCHEElis tak FKOOSna gaTOvitTranslation: I asked, “Where did you learn to cook so well?”Он ответил: “Моя мама итальянка, она научила.”Transcription: on atVYEtil maYA MAma italYANka aNA naooCHEElaTranslation: He replied, “My mom is Italian, she taught me.”For an individual action that was attempted but failed
With negation, perfective verbs in the past mean a single action that was attempted, but didn’t work out, or the focus on the absence of the desired result. For example:
perfective pastЯ не понял его объяснений.Transcription: ya ni POnyal yiVO abisNYEniyTranslation: I didn’t understand his explanations.В итоге мы не заплатили ни копейки.Transcription: v iTOgye my ni zaplaTEEli ni kaPYEYkiTranslation: In the end we didn’t pay a cent.Ты до сих пор не нашёл работу.Transcription: ty da sikh por ni naSHOL raBOtooTranslation: You still haven’t found a job.
Imperfective vs. perfective past: comparison
Let’s now compare the meaning of perfective and imperfective verbs used in similar contexts.
| Imperfective verb | Perfective verb |
|---|---|
Ника вчера читала и слушала музыку. Transcription: NEEka fchiRA chiTAla i SLOOshala MOOzykoo Translation: Yesterday Nika was reading and listening to music. She was doing that for some time, there is no obvious result of those actions. | Ника вчера прочитала книгу и прослушала несколько опер. Transcription: NEEka fchiRA prochiTAla KNEEgoo i praSLOOshala NYEskalka Opyer Translation: Yesterday Nika read a book and listened to a few operas. The actions were completed with a tangible result. |
Когда он приехал, мы ужинали. Transcription: kagDA on priYEkhal my OOzhynali Translation: When he arrived, we were having dinner. Action in progress at a certain moment in the past. | Когда он приехал, мы поужинали. Transcription: kagDA on priYEkhal my paOOzhynali Translation: When he arrived, we had dinner. One completed action after the other. |
Пока вы отдыхали, я убирался и стирал. Transcription: paKA vy adyKHAli ya oobiRALsya i stiRAL Translation: While you were resting I was cleaning and doing laundry. Focus on duration of actions. | Пока вы отдыхали, я убрался и постирал. Transcription: paKA vy adyKHAli ya ooBRALsya i pastiRAL Translation: While you were resting I cleaned and did laundry. Focus on the fact that actions were completed. |
В детстве я часто терял ключи от дома. Transcription: v DYEtstvye ya CHASta tiRYAL klyuCHEE ad DOma Translation: As a child, I often lost the house keys. Repeated action in the past. | Однажды в детстве я потерял ключи от дома. Transcription: adNAZHdy v DYEtstvye ya patiRYAL klyuCHEE ad DOma Translation: Once, as a child, I lost the house keys. Individual action in the past. |
Мои родители не помогали мне деньгами. Transcription: maEE raDEEtili ni pamaGAli mnye dinGAmi Translation: My parents didn’t assist me with money. My parents never tried to help me by giving me money. | Эти деньги не помогли мне спасти бизнес. Transcription: Eti DYENgi ni pamaGLEE mnye spasTEE BEEZnes Translation: This money didn’t help me save the business. I did get some money, and tried to use it to save my business, but it didn’t work out. |
Although we have been focusing on the differences between the uses of perfective and imperfective verbs in the past in Russian, there are situations when there is very little difference in meaning between the two aspects. Take a look at these examples:
| Imperfective verb | Perfective verb |
|---|---|
Ты кошек кормил? Transcription: ty KOshek karMEEL Translation: Have you fed the cats? Focus on the fact. | Ты кошек покормил? Transcription: ty KOshek pakarMEEL Translation: Have you fed the cats? Focus on the result. |
К тому времени я работала на заводе уже пять лет. Transcription: k tamOO VRYEmini ya raBOtala na zaVOdye ooZHE pyat lyet Translation: By that time I had been working on the plant for five years already. Focus on duration and the fact that action was unfinished. | К тому времени я проработала на заводе уже пять лет. Transcription: k tamOO VRYEmini ya praraBOtala na zaVOdye ooZHE pyat lyet Translation: By that time I had worked on the plant for five years already. Focus on the result. |
Я вчера выступал на конференции. Transcription: ya fchiRA vystooPAL na kanfiRYENtsii Translation: Yesterday I presented at a conference. Focus on the fact. | Я вчера выступил на конференции. Transcription: ya fchiRA vystooPAL na kanfiRYENtsii Translation: Yesterday I presented at a conference. Focus on a completed individual action. |
Conclusion
The Russian past tense is relatively easy to form from a verb’s infinitive using suffixes -л, -ла, -ло, -ли.
Perfective and imperfective verbs have quite different uses in the past tense.
Imperfective verbs are used…
to state a fact
to describe an action in progress at a certain time
to describe an action with a specific duration
for habitual actions in the past
to talk about actions that were not attempted
to describe repeatedly attempted but failed actions
Perfective verbs are used…
to talk about completed actions and series of completed actions
to describe present results
with verbs introducing direct speech
for an individual action that was attempted but failed
Now, practice what you’ve learned by downloading the activities below!
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