Verb Aspects — Imperfective vs Perfective
The Two Aspects
Every Russian verb comes in two flavors:
| Imperfective (НСВ) | Perfective (СВ) | |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | process, habit, ongoing | completed action, result |
| Tenses | past, present, future | past and future only |
| Question | что делать? | что сделать? |
Common Aspect Pairs
| Imperfective | Pronunciation | Perfective | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| читать | chi-TAT' | прочитать | pra-chi-TAT' | to read |
| писать | pi-SAT' | написать | na-pi-SAT' | to write |
| делать | DYE-lat' | сделать | ZDYE-lat' | to do/make |
| говорить | ga-va-RIT' | сказать | ska-ZAT' | to say/speak |
| покупать | pa-koo-PAT' | купить | koo-PIT' | to buy |
| учить | oo-CHIT' | выучить | VY-oo-chit' | to learn |
| смотреть | smat-RYET' | посмотреть | pas-mat-RYET' | to watch |
| помогать | pa-ma-GAT' | помочь | pa-MOCH' | to help |
When to Use Which
Imperfective (process/habit):
- Я читал книгу весь день. (ya chi-TAL KNEEgoo vyes’ dyen’) (I was reading the book all day.)
- Он читает каждый вечер. (on chi-TA-yet KAZHdiy VYEcher) (He reads every evening.)
Perfective (completed):
- Я прочитал книгу. (ya pra-chi-TAL KNEEgoo) (I read / finished the book.)
- Завтра я прочитаю эту статью. (ZAFtra ya pra-chi-TA-yu EH-too stat’-YU) (Tomorrow I will read / finish this article.)
💡 Perfective has no present tense — a perfective verb in present form becomes future!
Practice
What is the perfective of читать (to read)?
прочитать
Imperfective or perfective: 'I finished writing the essay'?
Perfective: Я написал сочинение.
Why does perfective have no present tense?
A completed action cannot be happening right now — completion implies it's done