The Big Silver Book of Russian Verbs, 2nd Edition

By Jack Franke

Become a Russian verb virtuoso!

The Big Silver Book of Russian Verbs is the most comprehensive resource available for learning and mastering Russian verbs. Designed for beginning through advanced learners, this indispensable guide will help you conjugate verbs with ease, enabling you to communicate in Russian confidently.

Inside you will find:

• 555 fully conjugated verbs, listed alphabetically
• Current idioms and expressions for each verb
• The Top 50 verbs, with many examples of their usage in context
• More than 4,200 verbs cross-referenced to conjugation models
• A handy guide to deciphering irregular verb forms

• Language: English
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education
• Release date: Aug 5, 2011
• ISBN: 9780071768955

Book preview

Preface

The second edition of The Big Silver Book of Russian Verbs is intended for use with all major Russian language textbooks in any course from the first through the fourth years, or separately as a reference for independent study. This book is comprised of verbs from the most popular textbooks in use today, as well as reflecting frequency usage in contemporary Russian. The aim of this book is to provide students with a single reference that they can turn to for questions on conjugation, stems, collocations, and usage.

I am grateful to the following professors for their efforts in promoting Russian, and those who provided me the foundation and inspiration to write this book: Ronni Gordon, David Stillman, Jean Rose, Norma Barr, William Lewis, Mara Sukholutskaya, Sophia Lubensky, Benjamin Rifkin, Thomas Garza, Charles McDowell, and Nina Aleksandrovna Lubimova. I would like to express my appreciation to Professor Steven Hassman and the late Professor Terrence Wade, who provided invaluable feedback and suggestions. Additionally, I am very grateful to all those who provided comments on the first edition.

Numerous references were consulted in the preparation of this book. These include:

The Russian Verb: Prepositional and Non-Prepositional Government (Andreyeva Georg and Tolmachova, Moscow: Russky yazyk Publishers, 1983) was used for verbal government.

Fundamentals of Russian Verbal Government for Students and Teachers (Thomas J. Garza, Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt Publishing, 1994) was incorporated for the Jackobsonian one-stem verbal stem system.

Complete Handbook of Russian Verbs (L.I. Pirogova, Lincolnwood, Illinois: Passport Books, 1995) served as a basis to simplify Russian verbal conjugations into six classes and irregular verbs.

Bol’shoi Tolkovyj Slovar’ Russkogo Yazyka (S.A. Kuznetsov, St. Petersburg: Norint, 1998) provided numerous contemporary examples and usage in the modern, post-soviet Russian language.

Russian-English Dictionary of Idioms (Sophia Lubensky, New York: Random House, 1995) was used to verify the collocations and phraseology of many of the idioms.

I would also like to thank my agent, Maureen Maloney, at Waterside Productions.

I am deeply indebted to Chris for all the support and encouragement over the years.

RUSSIAN TENSE PROFILES

THE BASICS OF CONJUGATION

The verb is the most important part of speech in the Russian language. Quite frankly, ‘to be’ or ‘not to be’ is out of the question without a verb. The number of verbs in the Russian language is vast and amorphous, and it is important that English-speaking students learn the nuances and idiosyncrasies of the Russian verbal system. This system is predicated on the existence of the following:

1) The Persons of the Verb

2) The infinitive

3) The stem

4) Verbal Aspect

5) Tense

6) Conjugation

7) Mood

These concepts are summarized below. Acquaint yourself with them before proceeding to the profiles of each tense.

The Persons of the Verb in English

The Persons of the Verb in Russian

The subject pronouns in Russian correspond similarly to the English system.

Note the following:

1. TbI is the informal usage for you. It is used with family members, children, close friends, and pets. When Russians wish to speak informally to one another for the first time, they say, .

2. The Russian has two forms for you. They vary according to formality and number. TbI is informal singular, BbI is formal singular and both formal and informal plural. BbI is the marker of formality, politeness, and seniority. Whenever you are in doubt about which form to use, err on the side of caution and use the polite form (BbI) unless you are speaking to a child or a pet.

The Infinitive

The infinitive is the form of the verb that is typically shown in dictionaries; it is not conjugated. You can recognize the infinitive by its ending: -Tb, -Tи, or -чb. In English a verb beginning with to is an infinitive. The infinitive is made up of the stem and its ending.

A Russian Spelling Rule

In determining whether the first person singular ending is -ю or -y or the third person plural ending is - T or -aT, it is important to memorize the spelling rule that r, K, X, ж, ч, ш, ш, ц, are followed by a, y but never , ю. The reason is that the first singular and third plural verbs in Russian must adhere to this spelling rule.

The Stem

The one-stem system of Russian verbal conjugation is used throughout this book. This system was created by the world reknowned Russian-American scholar Roman Jakobson. By learning the stem of a given verb and a few conjugation paradigms, the learner should be able to create the full paradigm of a given verb. In total there are eleven verb types, all of which are represented in the model conjugations. For the sake of brevity and clarity, however, only six verb types are classified in this book. They are:

All other verbs types are classified in this book as irregular verbs (i).

The Two-Stem System

In Russian two methods of conjugating the verb are taught: the two-stem system and the one-stem system. The two-stem system is taught in many high schools and colleges for beginning students. In it, tense formation is based on an infinitive stem and a present-future stem, to which endings are added. The infinitive stem is derived from its dictionary form. The present-future stem is derived by dropping the the third person plural ending of the verb . The following table shows the endings of both Conjugation I and II in the two-stem system.

The One-Stem System

The one-stem system of verb formation in Russian is fairly simple, though it requires a knowledge of the third person plural of the present tense. Using the example verb , to find the stem we conjugate the verb in the third person plural, thus creating . Following Russian spelling rules, this gives us the stem . The is not seen in the conjugation, but whenever the letters , e, ë, or are present in a conjugation, this soft consonant exists between the two vowels. The is considered a consonant in the conjugation, and the following two formulae are used when combining the stem with its grammatical endings.

Verb stems ending in a vowel are denoted as (V).

Verb stems ending in a cononant are denoted as (C).

Formula #1

Formula #2

In other words, a final stem vowel drops in front of an ending/suffix beginning with a vowel and a final stem consonant drops in front of an ending/suffix beginning with a consonant.

Verbal Aspect

Every verb in Russian is either imperfective or perfective in aspect. Aspect describes how the action takes place, and these aspects describe two different kinds of action. For example, the imperfective aspect describes actions of a general nature, things in progress, and repetitive or habitual actions. Perfective verbs, conversely, emphasize completion of an action (past or future) or have a restricted, focused meaning.

Here are examples with the aspectual pairs and .

Although this explanation of aspect is rather simplified, it provides the basis for Russian language acquisition. However, there are numerous instances where the rules appear to be violated, and even native Russian speakers may argue on the correctness of a given sentence in certain situations.

Imperfective Aspect

The imperfective may be used in all three tenses in Russian: present, past and future. The actions must be seen as a process – incomplete, habitual, repetitive, or in general. Imperfective verbs also refer to actions that take place simultaneously or where there is an interruption. When in doubt, or if the result is unclear, the imperfective should be used as the default mode.

In addition to the above-mentioned rules, there are certain adverbs and adverbial expressions that occur with far greater frequency with imperfectives than perfectives.

Perfective Aspect

The perfective aspect, by its nature, has only two tenses in Russian: past and future. Since the present tense is in progress, it cannot be completed. Perfective verbs are often used where there was or will be a completed action. In addition, in questions where the interlocutor specifically asks about an event using the perfective aspect, the same aspect is used in the response.

As with the imperfective aspect, there are also adverbs and adverbial expressions that suggest completion or finality and encourage the use of the perfective aspect.

Tense

Tense describes when the action takes place. In Russian there are three tenses: present, past and future. The ending shows the person who performs the act and the tense.

Although Russian lacks the number of verb tenses found in English, through a combination of tense and aspect one can approximate all English tenses. The context of a given Russian sentence will often provide clues to the equivalent English tense.

Conjugation

In the present tense, a Russian verb has 6 endings, corresponding to the person of the verb (see above). The singular subjects are: I (1st person), you (2nd person), or he/she/it (3rd person). The plural subjects are: we (1st person), you (2nd person), or they (3rd person).

In Russian there are two conjugation classes. The first conjugation is referred to as the -e- type (ë when stressed), and the second conjugation is referred to as the -и- type. Below are the endings of the two conjugation classes for the present tense. Class II is used for type 2 regular verbs. All other regular verbs follow Class I.

Conjugation Class I (First Conjugation -e- type)

Conjugation Class II (Second Conjugation -и- type)

Mood

Russian and English both have three moods: indicative, imperative, and subjunctive. The indicative mood is used to express factual statements; the imperative mood is used to give commands; and the subjunctive mood is used to express hypothetical or contrary-to-fact statements.

Caution

Different textbooks, both in Russia and abroad, tend to use different rules and methods for teaching conjugation and the Russian verbal system. However, once the basic rules, as explained above, are memorized and patterns are established, the student will be able to predict the conjugation for the majority of verbs.

The Present Tense

Examine the conjugations of the six model verbs in the present tense, shown below. You will see that endings are not added, but are elided, for example, . This is one of the key features of the Russian one-stem verbal system.

Present Tense Conjugation Types

One example of each of the verb types is shown below; variants of each type appear on the next six pages. Although all the verbs on this page have a set stress pattern, some verbs in the following pages exhibit a floating stress.

Type 1 Present Tense Conjugation Samples

Type 1 verbs normally end in -aTb, -eTb, or - Tb. These verbs typically have a stem that ends with a vowel. These verbs take Conjugation Class I endings.

Type 2 Present Tense Conjugation Samples

Type 2 verbs normally end in . However, a small number of verbs may end in -aTb, -eTb, or - Tb; Some examples include: , , , , , , , and . Verbs in this conjugation take Class II endings.

Note: Spelling Rules influence the 1st person singular and 3rd person plural of and . Additionally, there is a floating stress in , and .

Type 3 Present Tense Conjugation

Type 3 verbs normally end in -HYTb, , , and a few verbs end in -aTb or . These verbs are conjugated in the present tense with Conjugation Class I, -e- type (ë when stressed).

Note: There is a floating stress in and .

Type 4 Present Tense Conjugation

Type 4 verbs normally end in -OBaTb, . The -OBa verb stem reduces to throughout the present tense. Occasionally with -eBaTb endings, the verb stem changes to , and with a stressed ending it will take -ë-. Examples of such verbs include: , , and .

Type 5 Present Tense Conjugation

Type 5 verbs end in -CTи, -3Tb, and CTb. Many definite form (unidirectional) motion verbs have these endings, including their prefixed derivatives. These verbs are conjugated in the present tense with Conjugation I, -e- class (ë when stressed).