Verbal aspect: an introduction

A1 — Глаголы

Aspect basics: imperfective vs perfective (читать/прочитать)

Can tell imperfective from perfective verbs in common pairs (читать/прочитать) and choose between process and result in simple sentences.

Examples

Я чита́л кни́гу час. (процесс) — I was reading a book for an hour.
Я прочита́л кни́гу. (результат) — I finished reading the book.
Де́лать → сде́лать. — To do → to do (and finish).

VerbsA1

Verbal aspect: an introduction

Aspect basics: imperfective vs perfective (читать/прочитать)

Learning Goal

Can tell imperfective from perfective verbs in common pairs (читать/прочитать) and choose between process and result in simple sentences.

Exam Skills:Reading

Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?

Я чита́л кни́гу час. (процесс)

I was reading a book for an hour.

Я прочита́л кни́гу. (результат)

I finished reading the book.

Де́лать → сде́лать.

To do → to do (and finish).

Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?

Almost every Russian verb comes in two versions, an imperfective and a perfective, and you have to choose one every time you speak about the past or the future. English expresses some of the same ideas with "was doing" versus "did" or "have done", but Russian builds the choice into the verb itself.

	Imperfective	Perfective
Focus	the process, repetition, the action in general	one complete action, the result
Examples	чита́ть, писа́ть, де́лать	прочита́ть, написа́ть, сде́лать
Present	я чита́ю "I read, I'm reading"	none
Past	я чита́л "I was reading, I used to read"	я прочита́л "I read it through, I've read it"
Future	я бу́ду чита́ть "I'll be reading"	я прочита́ю "I'll read it (to the end)"

A quick test

Ask: is the point that the job got done? Вчера́ я написа́л письмо́ ба́бушке: the letter is finished and can be posted. Вчера́ я писа́л письмо́: I spent time on it, and maybe it is not finished. Habits are imperfective: Ка́ждое у́тро я де́лаю заря́дку, "Every morning I do my exercises".

How the pairs are built

A prefix makes the perfective: чита́ть → прочита́ть, писа́ть → написа́ть, де́лать → сде́лать, гото́вить → пригото́вить. The prefix varies, so learn each pair as a unit.
A change of suffix: реша́ть ↔ реши́ть, отвеча́ть ↔ отве́тить, покупа́ть ↔ купи́ть.
A different word altogether: говори́ть ↔ сказа́ть, брать ↔ взять.

The mistake English speakers make most is reaching for the perfective whenever English uses the simple past. "I read this book last year" can be Я чита́л э́ту кни́гу if you just mean you have read it at some point. At this level, aim to recognise the pairs and use the perfective for finished one-off results.

Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises

Practice Exercises

Using the perfective for every English simple past: "I read this book last year" can be Я чита́л э́ту кни́гу if you just mean you have read it.
Adding a duration to a perfective: *Я прочита́л кни́гу час → Я чита́л кни́гу час. Time spent goes with the imperfective.
Assuming one prefix makes every pair: прочита́ть, написа́ть, сде́лать, but also купи́ть (покупа́ть) and сказа́ть (говори́ть).

Я чита́л кни́гу час. (процесс)

I was reading a book for an hour.

чита́л ... час: the imperfective with a duration describes the activity, not its completion.

Я прочита́л кни́гу. (результат)

I finished reading the book.

прочита́л: the perfective reports the result, the book is finished.

Де́лать → сде́лать.

To do → to do (and finish).

с- turns де́лать into its perfective partner сде́лать.

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Frequently asked questions

When do you use Verbal aspect: an introduction?: Almost every Russian verb comes in two versions, an imperfective and a perfective , and you have to choose one every time you speak about the past or the future. English expresses some of the same ideas with "was doing" versus "did" or "have done", but Russian builds the choice into the verb itself.
How do you form Verbal aspect: an introduction?: Ask: is the point that the job got done? Вчера́ я написа́л письмо́ ба́бушке : the letter is finished and can be posted. Вчера́ я писа́л письмо́ : I spent time on it, and maybe it is not finished. Habits are imperfective: Ка́ждое у́тро я де́лаю заря́дку , "Every morning I do my exercises". The mistake English speakers make most is reaching for the perfective whenever English uses the simple past. "I read this book last year" can be Я чита́л э́ту кни́гу if you just mean you have read it at some point. At this level, aim to recognise the pairs and use the perfective for finished one-off results.
What are common mistakes with Verbal aspect: an introduction?: Using the perfective for every English simple past: "I read this book last year" can be Я чита́л э́ту кни́гу if you just mean you have read it. Adding a duration to a perfective: *Я прочита́л кни́гу час → Я чита́л кни́гу час . Time spent goes with the imperfective. Assuming one prefix makes every pair: прочита́ть , написа́ть , сде́лать , but also купи́ть (покупа́ть) and сказа́ть (говори́ть).

Imperfective

Perfective

Focus

the process, repetition, the action in general

one complete action, the result

Examples

чита́ть, писа́ть, де́лать

прочита́ть, написа́ть, сде́лать

Present

я чита́ю "I read, I'm reading"

none

Past

я чита́л "I was reading, I used to read"

я прочита́л "I read it through, I've read it"

Future

я бу́ду чита́ть "I'll be reading"

я прочита́ю "I'll read it (to the end)"

Frequently asked questions

When do you use Verbal aspect: an introduction?

Almost every Russian verb comes in two versions, an imperfective and a perfective , and you have to choose one every time you speak about the past or the future. English expresses some of the same ideas with "was doing" versus "did" or "have done", but Russian builds the choice into the verb itself.

How do you form Verbal aspect: an introduction?

Ask: is the point that the job got done? Вчера́ я написа́л письмо́ ба́бушке : the letter is finished and can be posted. Вчера́ я писа́л письмо́ : I spent time on it, and maybe it is not finished. Habits are imperfective: Ка́ждое у́тро я де́лаю заря́дку , "Every morning I do my exercises". The mistake English speakers make most is reaching for the perfective whenever English uses the simple past. "I read this book last year" can be Я чита́л э́ту кни́гу if you just mean you have read it at some point. At this level, aim to recognise the pairs and use the perfective for finished one-off results.

What are common mistakes with Verbal aspect: an introduction?

Using the perfective for every English simple past: "I read this book last year" can be Я чита́л э́ту кни́гу if you just mean you have read it. Adding a duration to a perfective: *Я прочита́л кни́гу час → Я чита́л кни́гу час . Time spent goes with the imperfective. Assuming one prefix makes every pair: прочита́ть , написа́ть , сде́лать , but also купи́ть (покупа́ть) and сказа́ть (говори́ть).