This lesson will help you use formal and informal pronouns depending on the situation. Also, you will get to know the structure of simple questions in Ukrainian and finally, we’ll continue to conjugate verbs in present. Let’s go!
Useful phrase in Ukrainian
Listen and repeat the following sentence:
Ви́бачте, я не розумíю.
Sorry, I don’t understand.
Ви́бачте This is the first imperative form that you will learn in the course. It means “excuse me”, but only when you address someone formally. If you talk to a friend you will use the informal form: Ви́бач. You will learn about formal and informal in future lessons.
Ukrainian vocabulary
In this lesson, we will practice the following Ukrainian words. Listen to the audio and remember the vocabulary:
ми
we
ви
you
розумíти
to understand
тако́ж
also
теж
too
прощава́й
bye
до поба́чення
see you
до зу́стрічі
see you
віта́ю
hello (formal)
лише́
only
Dialogues
Listen carefully to the following Ukrainian dialogues. They will help you understand this lesson’s vocabulary in the right context:
Dialogue 1
Привíт Ма́ша та Вíка, як спра́ви?
Hi Masha and Vika, how are you?
Привíт, Вíтя. Все до́бре, дя́куємо.
Hi Vitya. Everything fine, Thank you.
Ма́ша та Вíка, ви розмовля́єте італíйською?
Masha and Vika, (Do) you speak Italian?
Так, ми розмовля́ємо італíйською.
Yes, we speak Italian.
Я теж.
Me too.
До́бре, прощава́й!
Ok, bye!
До зу́стрічі!
See you!
Dialogue 2
Віта́ю мíстер Сміт. Ви розмовля́єте украї́нською?
Hello Mr Smith. Do you speak Ukrainian?
Ви́бачте, я не розумíю.
Sorry, I don’t understand.
Ви не розумíєте? Але́ мíстер Сміт, ви не розмовля́єте украї́нською?
You don’t understand? But Mr Smith, you don’t speak Ukrainian?
Я не мíстер Сміт. Я Пе́дро. Я іспа́нець та розмовля́ю лише́ іспа́нською.
I (am) not Mr Smith. I (am) Pedro. I (am) Spanish and I speak only Spanish.
Ви́бачте. До поба́чення.
Sorry. Good bye.
До поба́чення.
Good bye.
Ukrainian grammar
Let’s study the grammar used in this lesson:
How to say “you” in Ukrainian
In Ukrainian there are two different ways of saying “you”, a formal and an informal way. There are no specific rules about when to use each, but in general we could say the following:
- Formal “you” (ви): used with older people and people we don’t know well
- Informal “you” (ти): used with relatives, children and close friends.
You will only need to learn two forms: “ти” and “ви”. The first one (ти) is only used for informal address in singular. For any other case “ви” is used:
| Singular |
Plural |
|---|---|
| Informal = Ти (you, one person who I treat as a friend) | Informal = Ви (you, many people who I treat as friends) |
| Formal = Ви (you, one person who I treat formally) | Formal = Ви (you, many people who I treat formally |
In the dialogues you have seen examples of formal and informal situations. During the course you will see more examples.
Also, pay attention to the verbs. The endings for “ти” and “ви” are easy to recognise:
| Verb: зна́ти |
Verb: розмовля́ти |
|---|---|
| Ти зна́єш | Ти розмовля́єш |
| Ви зна́єте | Ви розмовля́єте |
The verbs in the present tense
During these three lessons you have learnt almost all personal pronouns in Ukrainian (I, you, he, we,…). Now you’ll learn how to say “they”: вони́ (pronounced “vo-ny”).
Here you have the whole conjugation of the verb “розмовля́ти” in the present tense. Listen to the audio and pay attention to the pronunciation:
In future lessons you will learn new verbs.
| розмовля́ти |
|---|
| я розмовля́ю |
| ти розмовля́єш |
| він/вона́ розмовля́є |
| ми розмовля́ємо |
| ви розмовля́єте |
| вони́ розмовля́ють |
How to make questions in Ukrainian
If you want to make a question in Ukrainian, you only need to use a question mark. This means:
- You do not need to change the position of the verb.
- You do not need to use an auxiliary verb like “do” in English.
Look at these examples for a better understanding:
| Ти украї́нка. | You are Ukrainian. |
| Ти украї́нка? | Are you Ukrainian? |
| Ти розмовля́єш украї́нською. | You speak Ukrainian. |
| Ти розмовля́єш украї́нською? | Do you speak Ukrainian? |
Test
Check if you know this lesson:
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