Language/Russian/Grammar/Past-Tense

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Russian → Grammar → 0 to A1 Course → Past Tense

Welcome to the lesson on the Past Tense in Russian! Understanding the past tense is crucial for anyone looking to communicate effectively in Russian. It allows you to express actions that have already occurred, share experiences, and tell stories, which is an essential part of any language. In this lesson, you will learn how to form the past tense of Russian verbs and understand the rules for conjugation based on the verb's ending and the noun's gender.

In Russian, verbs change their form based on the time they represent. While the present tense can be quite straightforward, the past tense requires attention to gender and number, making it a bit more complex. However, don't worry—by the end of this lesson, you'll feel confident using the past tense in your conversations!

The Basics of Past Tense

The past tense in Russian is a bit like a time machine; it takes you back to events that have already happened. When forming the past tense, the verb changes based on the gender of the subject and whether it is singular or plural.

Gender and Number

In Russian, nouns and adjectives have genders: masculine, feminine, and neuter. The past tense verb forms are adjusted according to the gender of the subject. Here’s how it works:

• Masculine Singular: The verb typically ends in -л.

• Feminine Singular: The verb changes to end in -ла.

• Neuter Singular: The verb changes to end in -ло.

• Plural (all genders): The verb ends in -ли.

Let’s look at some examples:

Russian	Pronunciation	English
он пошёл	on poshól	he went
она пошла	ona poshlá	she went
оно пошло	ono poshló	it went
они пошли	oni poshli	they went

Conjugation Patterns

To form the past tense, we generally take the infinitive form of the verb, remove the infinitive ending, and add the appropriate past tense ending based on the gender and number.

For regular verbs, the endings will follow these patterns:

• Infinitive ending -ть

• Masculine: -л

• Feminine: -ла

• Neuter: -ло

• Plural: -ли

Let’s see some examples with the verb "читать" (to read):

Russian	Pronunciation	English
он читал	on chitál	he read
она читала	ona chitála	she read
оно читало	ono chitálo	it read
они читали	oni chitáli	they read

Irregular Verbs

Some verbs may not follow regular patterns and have irregular forms. It's important to memorize these forms as they appear. For instance, the verb "идти" (to go) has the past tense forms:

Russian	Pronunciation	English
он шёл	on shól	he went
она шла	ona shlá	she went
оно шло	ono shló	it went
они шли	oni shlí	they went

Practice Exercises

Now that you understand the rules, let’s put your knowledge to the test!

1. Fill in the blanks with the correct past tense form:

• Я (писать) _______ письмо. (I wrote a letter.)

• Он (играть) _______ в футбол. (He played football.)

• Она (смотреть) _______ фильм. (She watched a movie.)

• Мы (путешествовать) _______ летом. (We traveled in summer.)

Answers:

1. Я написал (masculine) / Я написала (feminine) письмо.

2. Он играл в футбол.

3. Она смотрела фильм.

4. Мы путешествовали летом.

2. Match the sentences:

• a) Он купил книгу. (He bought a book.)

• b) Они поехали на море. (They went to the sea.)

• c) Она готовила ужин. (She cooked dinner.)

• d) Я видел её. (I saw her.)

Answers:

a) - He bought a book.

b) - They went to the sea.

c) - She cooked dinner.

d) - I saw her.

3. Translate the following sentences to Russian:

• They played in the park.

• She listened to music.

• He cooked breakfast.

Answers:

• Они играли в парке.

• Она слушала музыку.

• Он готовил завтрак.

4. Conjugate the following verbs in the past tense:

• говорить (to speak)

• прыгать (to jump)

• работать (to work)

Answers:

• он говорил / она говорила / они говорили

• он прыгал / она прыгала / они прыгали

• он работал / она работала / они работали

5. Identify the gender of the subject and change the verb accordingly:

• Она (бежать) _______ быстро. (She ran fast.)

• Он (плавать) _______ в реке. (He swam in the river.)

Answers:

• Она бегала быстро.

• Он плавал в реке.

6. Change the following sentences to the past tense:

• Я (есть) яблоко. (I eat an apple.)

• Мы (идти) в кино. (We go to the cinema.)

Answers:

• Я ел (masculine) / Я ела (feminine) яблоко.

• Мы шли в кино.

7. Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verb:

• Ты (петь) _______ песню. (You sang a song.)

• Они (работать) _______ весь день. (They worked all day.)

Answers:

• Ты пел (masculine) / Ты пела (feminine) песню.

• Они работали весь день.

8. Fill in the past tense forms in the sentences:

• Он (сказать) _______ правду. (He told the truth.)

• Мы (позвонить) _______ другу. (We called a friend.)

Answers:

• Он сказал правду.

• Мы позвонили другу.

9. Write your own sentences in the past tense about what you did yesterday.

10. Choose the correct past tense forms of the verbs:

• Она (пойти) _______ в магазин. (She went to the store.)

• Мы (смотреть) _______ телевизор. (We watched TV.)

Answers:

• Она пошла в магазин.

• Мы смотрели телевизор.

Summary

In this lesson, you’ve learned how to form the past tense of Russian verbs, focusing on how to conjugate them based on gender and number. We’ve covered regular and irregular verbs and provided plenty of examples to illustrate the rules. With practice exercises, you can apply what you've learned and reinforce your understanding.

Keep practicing, and soon you’ll be able to express all your past experiences in Russian!

Table of Contents - Russian Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

  ---

Alphabet and Pronunciation

• Cyrillic Alphabet
• Pronunciation Rules

  ---

Basic Phrases and Greetings

• Greetings and Introductions
• Everyday Phrases

  ---

Nouns and Gender

• Noun Gender
• Plurals

  ---

Numbers and Time

• Numbers 1-10
• Telling Time

  ---

Cases and Prepositions

• Nominative Case
• Prepositional Case

  ---

Family and Relationships

• Family Members
• Relationships and Marital Status

  ---

Verbs and Conjugation

• Present Tense
• Past Tense

  ---

Food and Dining

• Common Foods
• Dining Out

  ---

Russian Traditions and Holidays

• National Holidays
• Traditional Celebrations

  ---

Travel and Transportation

• Modes of Transportation
• Travel Phrases

  ---

Adjectives and Adverbs

• Adjective Agreement
• Comparatives and Superlatives

  ---

Hobbies and Leisure Activities

• Hobbies
• Entertainment

  ---

Russian Literature and Arts

• Famous Writers
• Russian Art and Music

Sources

• Russian Past Tense - Russian Verbs
• Past Tense of the Verb - Learn Russian Grammar
• Russian/Grammar/Past tense - Wikibooks, open books for an open ...

Other Lessons

• Perfective Imperfective
• Accusative Case
• Порядок слов в русском предложении
• How to Use Have
• Future Tense
• Кое То Нибудь
• Noun Adjective Agreement
• Introduction to Pronouns
• Present Tense

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