Past Tense (Прошедшее время)
The Russian past tense is the easiest tense to learn. There is one past tense, and its ending follows the gender and number of the subject, not the person: -л (he), -ла (she), -ло (it), -ли (they, and polite вы). Take the infinitive, drop -ть, add the ending. Which verb of the aspect pair you pick decides the meaning: делал (was doing) or сделал (did, got it done).
Measured in spoken Russian
41% of verbs in statements and questions are past tense. One set of endings (-л, -ла, -ло, -ли) for every person.
Four endings
Drop -ть and add -л, -ла, -ло, -ли. A man says я был, a woman says я была. The ending also shows who you speak to: ты был? to a man, ты была? to a woman.
Я был дома.
I was home.
a man speaking
Я была дома.
I was home.
a woman speaking
Мы были в кино.
We were at the movies.
Aspect gives the meaning
Use the imperfective verb for a process, a habit or a repeated action. Use the perfective verb for one finished action with a result. In speech, the perfective past is the most common verb form of all: сказал, понял, случилось.
Я читал книгу.
I was reading a book. / I read a book (at some point).
imperfective: the process
Я прочитал книгу.
I finished the book.
perfective: the result
Что случилось?
What happened?
A few irregular pasts
- идти → шел, шла, шли (and пойти → пошел, пошла)
- мочь → мог, могла, могли
- есть (eat) → ел, ела, ели
- умереть → умер, умерла
Examples
Я не знал.
I didn't know.
Она мне сказала.
She told me.
Ты видел?
Did you see?
Мы уже поели.
We have already eaten.
perfective: done
| Subject | быть (to be) | сказать (to say) |
|---|---|---|
| я, ты, он (a man) | был | сказал |
| я, ты, она (a woman) | была | сказала |
| оно (it) | было | сказало |
| мы, вы, они | были | сказали |
Common mistakes
- A woman saying я был sounds wrong at once. Women use -ла: я была, я сказала.
- ✗ Вы был? → ✓ Вы были? (polite вы always takes -ли, even for one person)
- Using the imperfective for one finished result: Я делал домашку can mean you never finished. Say Я сделал домашку for "I did my homework".
Lookup tips
- Russian has no "have done": Я уже поел (perfective past) covers "I have already eaten".
- The past form usually ends in -л, -ла, -ло or -ли. Look up the infinitive by replacing that ending with -ть.
Frequently asked questions
How many past tenses does Russian have?
One. The meaning that English expresses with "was doing", "did" and "have done" comes from the choice of aspect (делал or сделал).
Why does the ending not change for я and ты?
The past tense comes from an old participle, so it agrees with gender and number, like an adjective. That is also why the pronoun is needed in the past.