24.1 Past Tense of Verbs

two people in silhouette jumping on the beah

24.1 Past Tense of Verbs

This is a guest module created by Tetiana Kidruk.

In this module, you will learn how to form the past tense of most Ukrainian verbs.

Завдання 1

Read the dialogues below and note how the verbs change in the past tense. Then answer the questions that follow.

man leaning against a tree reading
– Ната́лю, ти лю́биш чита́ти? Що ти чита́ла мину́лого мі́сяця?
– Зазвича́й я чита́ю бага́то, але́ мину́лого мі́сяця я не чита́ла нічо́го. У ме́не нема́є ча́су. А ти, Рома́не?
– Рані́ше я не чита́в книг. І мій брат не чита́в, і моя́ ма́ма теж не чита́ла, але́ за́раз ми бага́то чита́ємо.
blonde woman with backpack in city with signs in Chinese
О́льго Петрі́вно, ви лю́бите подорожува́ти?
– Так, кожно́го ро́ку я подорожу́ю з сім’є́ю. Але́ мину́лого лі́та ми не подорожува́ли че́рез пандемі́ю COVID-19. А ви, Сергі́ю Вале́рійовичу, подорожува́ли куди́сь (anywhere)?
– Я – ні. Але́ мої́ ді́ти подорожува́ли в Туре́ччину. 
Важли́во!

In the past tense, verbs that end with -увати or -ювати do not drop the suffix -ва-, as they do in the present tense.

танцюва́ти → танцюва́в/танцюва́ла/танцюва́ли
(BUT танцю́ю in the present tense)

подорожува́ти – подорожува́в/подорожува́ла/ подорожува́ли
(BUT подорожу́ю in the present tense)

Завдання 2

Mark all verbs in the past tense in the dialogue below. Then answer the questions that follow.

Завдання 3

Place the lines below each image in the correct order to construct short dialogues. Then answer the questions that follow.

Важли́во!

Subjects that are neuter in gender have their own past-tense verb ending: –ло. For example:

Авто́ ко́штувало до́рого.
Цуценя́ спа́ло весь день.

The neuter form of the verb бу́ти in the past tense – було́ – is often used in impersonal sentences to describe how something was. Such sentences correspond to the English ones beginning with “It was…” For example:

– Як твої́ екза́мени?
– Це було́ ва́жко.
(It was hard.)

Завдання 4

Complete the telephone conversation below using appropriate verbs forms from the bank.

Важли́во!

Remember the past-tense forms of the verb ї́сти!

masculinefeminineneuterplural
ївї́лаї́ло ї́ли

Завдання 5

Caption each image with the most appropriate sequence of sentences about the activities that people did in the past.

Завдання 6

Answer the questions below by providing the correct form of the verb (and only the verb) in the past tense. Then answer the questions that follow.

Завдання 7

Complete the conversation below using appropriate verbs from the bank.

Мо́вний пазл

Look through the activities you have just completed and choose the correct statements to summarize what you have learned.

А тепе́р тест!

Complete the dialogue below using the appropriate past tense forms of the verbs in the bank.  You should only use each verb once.