Difference between revisions of "Language/Russian/Grammar/Use-of-the-verb-быть-in-the-past"
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Revision as of 19:43, 9 April 2020
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Hello everybody,
In today's lesson you will learn some useful vocabulary about ¨HOW TO USE THE VERB TO BE IN THE PAST¨ in Russian.
Feel free to edit this page by adding new words and expressions!
Very often, when they talk about the past, Russians use the past tense of быть:
The conjugation of the verb быть
- я, ты, он был (male)
- я, ты, она была (female)
- оно было (neutral and impersonal)
- они были (plural)
Examples (примеры)
- Когда это было?
When was it?
- Это было вчера.
It was yesterday.
- Это было здорово!
It was great!
- Где ты был?
Where were you?
- Книга была интересной.
The book was interesting.
- Вчера мы были в театре.
Yesterday we were at the theater.
How to say 'I had', 'you had', etc
Do you remember how you say 'I have' in Russian? It's the same pattern for saying 'I had'.
Examples
- У меня была температура вчера. - I had a fever yesterday.
- У него были проблемы, но сейчас всё хорошо. - He had problems, but now everything is fine.
Температура is a feminine word, so we use the feminine form of the verb быть. Проблемы is plural, so we use были.
In negative sentences, we always use было irrespective of gender of subject. Remember that in this case, the subject is still genitive.
- У нас не было денег. - We did not have money.
- У них не было документов. - They had no papers.
- У него не было выхода. - He had no solution.
- У меня никогда не было велосипеда. - I never had a bike.
Some explanations for using the verb to be in the past in Russian
ENGLISH | PRONUNCIATION
ENGLISH |
RUSSIAN | PRONUNCIATION
BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE |
BRAZILIAN
PORTUGUESE |
---|---|---|---|---|
I was | yah buhl (a) | Я БЫЛ (A) | iá bâL (a) | Eu era / estava |
You were | tuh buhl (ah) | TЫ БЫЛ (A) | tâ bâL (a) | Você era / estava |
He was | ohn buhl / | OH БЫЛ | on bâL | Ele era / estava |
She was | ah nah buh lah | OHA БЫЛA | aná bâ la | Ela era / estava |
We were | muh buh lih | MЫ БЫЛИ | mâ bâ li | Nós éramos / estávamos |
You were | vuh buh lih | BЫ БЫЛИ | vâ bâ li | Vocês eram / estavam |
They were | ah nih buh lih | OHИ БЫЛИ | aní bâ li | Eles eram / estavam
Elas eram / estavam |
Examples
ENGLISH | PRONUNCIATION
ENGLISH |
RUSSIAN | PRONUNCIATION
BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE |
BRAZILIAN
PORTUGUESE |
---|---|---|---|---|
When
was it? |
kahg dah eh tah
buh lah |
Когда это
было? |
ka gui dá é ta
bâ la |
Quando foi
isso? |
It was
yesterday. |
eh tah buh lah
vcheh rah |
Это было
вчера. |
é ta bâ la
vtche rá |
Foi
ontem. |
It was
great! |
eh tah buh lah
zdah roh vah |
Это было
здорово! |
é ta bâ la
zda rô va |
Foi
ótimo! |
Where
were you? |
gih dyeh
tuh buhl |
Где ты
был? |
gui die tâ
bâL |
Onde você
estava? |
The book
was interesting. |
knih gah buh lah
ihn teh ryehs noy |
Книга была
интересной. |
ki ni ga bâ la
in te ries noi |
O livro foi
interessante. |
Yesterday we were
at the theater. |
vchehrah muh buh lih
vih tih ah tryeh |
Вчера мы были
в театре. |
vtche rá mâ bâ li
vi te a trie |
Ontem nós estávamos
no teatro. |
Note that in this type of sentences, the Russians accentuate the particle не and do not put emphasis on the verb было.