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Guest Post: Everything you should know about the Ukrainian language (Part 2)


UKRAINIAN GRAMMAR TENSES

The Ukrainian language has 3 grammar tenses: present, past, and future. It exists two verb forms of the past and in the future tenses: imperfective and perfective. The imperfective form means that an action is ongoing and repetitive. The perfective form means that the action is completed (or will be completed in the future tense), this is an act of general nature. Here is an example of the verb “писати” /pysaty/ - to write:

  • Вона пише книгу – She writes a book (Present)
  • Вона давно писала книгу – She wrote a book a long time ago (Past Imperfective)
  • Вона написала книгу вчора – She wrote a book yesterday (Past Perfective)
  • Вона скоро писатиме книгу – She will write a book soon (Future Imperfective)
  • Вона напише завтра – She will write a book tomorrow (Future Perfective)

USEFUL PHRASES IN UKRAINIAN YOU SHOULD LEARN

Here are some useful phrases that you can learn:
  • Привіт /pryvit/ - Hello
  • Добрий день /dobryi den'/ - Good day
  • Як справи? /iak spravy/ - How are you?
  • Добре /dobre/ - Good
  • Так собі /ak sobi/ - So so
  • Погано /pohano/ - Bad
  • Дякую /diakooyu/ - Thanks
  • Як тебе (вас) звати? /iak tebe (vas) zvaty/ - What is your (your – formal form) name?
  • Чим ти займаєшся? Чим ви займаєтеся? /chym ty zaymayeshsia/ - What do you do?
  • Ким ти працюєш? Ким ви працюєте? /kym ty pratsuiesh/ - What is your job?
  • Скільки тобі (вам) років? /skilky tobi rokiv/ - How old are you?
  • Як ти проводиш вільний час? Як ви проводите вільний час? /iak ty provodysh vilnyi chas/ - How do you spend your free time?
  • Приємно познайомитися. /pryemno poznayomytysia/ - Nice to meet you.
  • До побачення /do pobatchenia/ - Good bye
  • Бувай /boovay/ - Bye

RESOURCES FOR LEARNING UKRAINIAN

Memrise
Memrise is one of the popular websites. There are at least 20 free Ukrainian courses for beginners. You can download it for your smartphone.

Duolingo
Duolingo is another popular platform for language learning. Recently, they have added the Ukrainian language for English speakers. It is also available as an application for your smartphone.

101languages
You can find everything concerning the Ukrainian grammar and vocabulary on this website. There is also a brief history of the Ukrainian language, useful resources, and even mini-games to practice your vocabulary.

Loecsen
Loecsen is a great website if you are going to travel to Ukraine and you want to learn some essential expressions. Among the 17 topics, there are greetings, how to book a hotel, restaurant, numbers, family and so on. Every phrase or word is followed by audio. You can even download PDF files to revise later.

Learn and play
Learn and play is a self-teaching game that includes various topics of everyday life. This application will be good for beginners as you can learn the Ukrainian alphabet and parts of speech. You can also test your pronunciation by using a spell checker. There are several simple games such as association the right word with the right picture, or choosing the right picture for the right word. Learn and play application includes 24 different topics such as clothing, body parts, office, travel, sport, etc.

Learn Ukrainian – 6,000 words
Learn Ukrainian – 6,000 words is an application aiming for learning new words. One of the important points is that you don't have to be connected to the Internet to use this application. There are a lot of different topics such as family, work, fruits, etc. You can also play games, work on your pronunciation and writing skills. This application proposes 3 difficulty levels: beginner, intermediate and advanced.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, I would like to say that now Ukrainian is among well-developed languages, regardless of that fact that it was banned during several periods. Its grammar is quite difficult but its vocabulary is rich. I am sure that this language will open the doors to the world of the various Ukrainian culture, beautiful folk songs, and colorful traditions. It will be a great base for you if you want to continue learning another Slavic language. Even if sometimes this language is underestimated by language learners, I hope that after reading this article you will change your mind.


I am a blogger (at www.ferulang.wordpress.com) and a foreign language teacher (English and French). I enjoy learning languages and writing about them. For the moment I speak 6 languages. I am also writing a book for people who want to learn Ukrainian.

Photo credit
running-city Flickr via Compfight cc

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