Language/Russian/Grammar/The-verb-to-be

Verb to be in Russian

Hello everybody,

In today's lesson you will learn some useful vocabulary about ¨THE VERB TO BE¨ in Russian.

Feel free to edit this page by adding new words and expressions!

Happy learning! :)

Upon getting the hang of this topic, you may find these relevant lessons worthwhile: Russian Grammar → Russian Nouns and Gender → Genitive Case ..., Use of the verb быть in the past, Use of the verb быть in the past & Порядок слов в русском предложении.

Past Tense

ENGLISH	PRONUNCIATION ENGLISH	RUSSIAN	PRONUNCIATION BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE	BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE
I was (MALE)	yah buhl	Я  БЫЛ	iá bâl	Eu era / Eu estava (MAS)
I was (FEMALE)	yah buh lah	Я  БЫЛA	iá bâ la	Eu era / Eu estava (FEM)
You were (MALE)	tuh buhl	TЫ БЫЛ	tâ bâl	Você era / Você estava (MAS)
You were (MALE)	tuh buh lah	TЫ БЫЛA	tâ bâ la	Você era / Você estava (FEM)
He was	ohn buhl	OH БЫЛ	on bâl	Ele era / Ele estava
She was	ah nah buh lah	OHA БЫЛA	aná bâ la	Ela era / Ela estava
We were	muh buh lih	MЫ БЫЛИ	mâ bâli	Nós éramos / Nós estávamos
You were (plural)	vuh buh lih	BЫ  БЫЛИ	vâ bali	Vocês eram / Vocês estavam
They were	ah nih buh lih	OHИ БЫЛИ	aní bâli	Eles eram / Eles estavam Elas eram / Elas estavam

Present Tense

ENGLISH	PRONUNCIATION ENGLISH	RUSSIAN	PRONUNCIATION BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE	BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE
I am ...	yah ...	Я ...	iá ...	Eu sou / Eu estou
You are ...	tuh ...	TЫ ...	tâ ...	Você é / Você está
He is ...	ohn ...	OH ...	on ...	Ele é / Ele está
She is ...	ah nah ...	OHA ...	aná ...	Ele é / Ela está
We are ...	muh ...	MЫ ...	mâ ...	Nós somos / Nós estamos
You are (plural) ...	vuh ...	BЫ ...	vâ ...	Vocês são / Vocês estão
They are ...	ah nih ...	OHИ ...	aní ...	Eles são / Elas estão Elas são / Elas estão

Future Tense

ENGLISH	PRONUNCIATION ENGLISH	RUSSIAN	PRONUNCIATION BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE	BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE
I will be	yah bou dou	Я БYДY	iá bú du	Eu serei / Eu estarei
You will be	tuh bou dihsh	TЫ БYДEШЬ	tâ bu dích	Você será / Você estará
He will be	ohn bou diht	OH БYДET	on bu dít	Ele será / Ele estará
She will be	ah nah bou diht	OHA БYДET	aná bu dít	Ela será / Ele estará
We will be	muh bou dihm	MЫ БYДEM	mâ bu dím	Nós seremos / Nós estaremos
You will be (plural)	vuh bou dih tyeh	BЫ БYДETE	vâ bu dí tiê	Vocês serão / Vocês estarão
They will be	ah nih bou diht	OHИ БYДYT	aní bu dút	Eles serão / Elas estarão Elas serão / Eles estarão

The translation to Russian of the verb "to be" is быть, but the infinitive is not very used.

In the past (Explanation)

Here is the conjugation of the verb to be in the past:

• male: я, ты, он был

• female: я, ты, она была

• neutral: оно было

• plural: мы, вы, они были

In the present (Explanation)

The present of the verb to be does not exist.

For example if you want to say: "He is not at home", in Russian it will be "Его нет дома", or the opposite, "He is at home" will be "Он дома".

Another example: "I am interpreter" it will be, without verb "Я - переводчик"

For more complicated sentences, we will use an equivalent: "I think, therefore I am" which translates to "Я мыслю, следовательно, существую", that is, word-by-word "I think, therefore I exist".

To say "This", we will use "Это", "This is my house" gives "Это мой дом", "This is my apartment" gives "Это моя квартира".

To say "That" we will use "То", "That is what I was talking about" gives "Именно то о чём я говорил"

In the future (Explanation)

Here is how the verb is conjugated in the future.

• я буду

• ты будешь

• он будет
• она будет

• мы будем

• вы будете

• они будут

And two examples: "I will be in Paris" => "Я буду в Париже" / "He will be displeased" => "Он будет недоволен"

Other Lessons

• Nouns
• Future Tense
• Plurals
• Кое То Нибудь
• Use of the verb быть in the past
• Russian cases
• А vs Но
• A vs И
• The verb to have