Classes of Verbs in

English vs. Ukrainian

The main classes of verbs as to their
functional significance are common
in the contrasted languages. These
are:
a) notional verbs (go, ask, write;
іти, запитувати, писати)
b) auxiliary verbs. The latter split into
primary (be, do, have; бути, мати)
modal (can, may, must, could, should,
need; могти, мусити, сміти, мати,
etc.)
and linking verbs (appear, look, become
turn grow; ставати, здаватися).
English lexical/nominal verbs split into
two subclasses which are not available in
Ukrainian
1) regular verbs forming their past stem
and the past participle with the help of the
ending, -ed, -d or -t (dressed/worked,
paid/said, learnt/sent);
2) irregular verbs having their past stems and
the past participle formed by way of alteration
of their base vowel (bind - bound - bound, take
- took - taken, begin -began - begun).
There are also some mixed-type verbs
in English (show — showed - shown,
crow — crew — crowed).
A separate subclass of irregular verbs
form the so-called invariables, which
have the same form for the present
and past stem/past participle,
cast - cast - cast, cost - cost - cost,
let - let - let, put - put - put, etc.
They are not available in Ukrainian, thought
suppletive verbs are common, however, (cf.
be - was - were, go - went; бути - є, іти
-пішов, пішла, брати - взяв, узяли).
The subdivision of verbs into
classes is based in Ukrainian on
• the correlation
between the
infinitival stem
of the verb
• its present or
simple future
stem on the
other
 On this
morphologi
cal basis
thirteen
classes of
verbs are
distinguishe
d in
Ukrainian
 CLASSES OF
UKRAINIAN VERBS
In the first class of verbs the infinitival stem has the
suffixes -ува-/-юва, and the present tense stem the
suffix -yj-/-ioj, -j-: куп-ува-ти - куп-yj-ють;
танц-юва-ти - танц-уj-уть; лупц-юва-ти -
лупц-yj-ymb.
The verbs of the second class have the suffix -ва- in
the infinitival stem and the suffix ва- in the present
tense/simple future stem: бувати -/по/бу-ваj-уть
The verbs of the third class have the suffix -а-/-я- in
the infinitival stem and the suffix -aj- in the
present/simple future stem. : баж-a-mu - баж-aj-
ymь, стріл-я-ти - стріл-я/-уть
In the fourth class are verbs with the -i- suffix in the
infinitival stem and the -i- suffix in the present/simple
future stem: чорн-і-ти - чор-ну-уть; шал-і-ти -
шал-ij-уть.
In the fifth class the verbs have the -а-/-я- suffix in
the infinitival stem, the zero suffix in the
present/simple future tense stem and the -уть/-ють
ending in the third person plural: бра-ти - бер-уть,
сл-а-mu - шл-ють, смі-я-тися - сміj-уться.
In the sixth class are verbs with the -i- suffix in the
infinitival stem and the zero suffix in the present
stem: рев-і-ти — рев-уть, хот-і-ти — хоч-уть
Verbs of the seventh class have the -ну- (-ону-) suffix
in the infinitival stem and the -н- (-ну-) suffix in the
simple future tense stem: гукну-ти, гук-н-уть, крик-
ну-ти, крик-н-уть
Verbs of the eighth class have a zero suffix in each of the
two stems and the ending -уть- in the
third person plural: нес-ти - нес-уть, вез-ти - вез-уть.
Verbs of the ninth class have a zero suffix in the
infinitival stem, a -j- suffix in the present tense stem
and the ending -уть- in the third person plural: pu-mu
- pu-j-уть, кри-ти - кри-j-ymb.
Verbs of the tenth class have the -и-(-І-) suffix in the
infinitival stem, a zero suffix in the present tense stem
and the -ать- ending in the third person plural: вод-
ити - еодж-у, вод-j-a-ть, no-j-imu — no-j-y, no-j-
ать.
Verbs of the eleventh class have an -a- suffix in the
infinitival stem, a zero suffix in the present tense stem
and the -ать- ending in the third person plural: крич-
у - крич-ать, мовч-у - мовч-ать.
Verbs of the twelfth class have an -i- suffix in the
infinitival stem and a zero suffix in the present stem:
гор-і-ти - гор-ю, лет-і-ти -леч-у.
Verbs of the thirteenth class have a 0 suffix in both
the stems and the ending -ать- in the third person
plural: біг-ти - біж-ать.
 According to their
paradigmaric features
• 1 declention (1-9)
• 2 declention (1-13)
These structural classes
of verbs differ from each
other by their
productivity. The most
productive are the first,
the third, the fourth, the
fifth and the ninth
classes. All remaining
classes (the second, the
sixth, the seventh, the
eighth, the tenth, the
eleventh, the twelfth, and
the thirteenth) are either
semantically closed or
poorly represented as it
is the case with the last
two of them.
Note. The personal endings of verbs of the first and
of the second declensions do not coincide in
Ukrainian as can be seen from the examples below:
As regards their role in
expressing predicativity, verbs
in the contrasted languages
may be
• a) of complete
predication
• b) of incomplete
predication.
VERBS OF COMPLETE
PREDICATION
1. Subjective verbs (always intransitive) like to act,
to go, to sleep, to glisten (діяти, йти, спати,
блищати and others)
2. Objective verbs (only transitive): to give, to
take, to envy (брати, давати, заздрити and
others).
3. Terminative verbs, expressing action
having final aims (to close, to open, to come,
to find; зачиняти, приходити, заходити).
4. Durative verbs, expressing action with no
final aim: to like, to love, to hate, to hope, to
work (подобатись, любити, ненавидіти).
5. Mixed- type verbs, which can have both
terminative and durative meaning: to sit, to
stand, to know, to remember (сидіти,
стояти, знати, пам'ятати, etc).
6. Reflexive verbs, which are formed in
English with the help of reflexive pronouns:
oneself, myself, himself, ourselves: to wash
oneself, to shave himself; to see herself in the
mirror, etc.
 REFLEXIVE VERBS
WHICH ARE NOT
AVAILABLE IN ENGLISH
1. Reciprocally reflexive/взаємно-
зворотні: зустрічатися, змагатися,
вітатися, листуватись, цілуватись.
2. Indirectly re-flexive/непрямо-
зворотні: радитися, збиратися (в
похід), лаштуватися (в дорогу).
 3. Generally reflexive/загально-
зворотні: милуватися, дивуватися,
злитися, журитися, мучитися and
others.
 4. Active-
objectless/reflexive
verbs (активно-
безоб'єктні)
кусатися (собака
кусається),
хвицатися (корова
хвицається),
дряпатися (кішка
дряпається),
жалитися
(кропива
жалиться),
колотися (стерня
колеться).
5. Passively-qualitative/reflexive пасивно-
якісні: гнутися, битися, ламатися,
м'ятися, колотися (дерево гарно колеться),
кривитися (залізо гнеться, скло б'ється,
дитина кривиться).
6. Impersonal-reflexive
verbs/безособово-зворотні: не спиться,
не їсться, погано/гарно живеться, не
лежиться).
 VERBS OF
INCOMPLETE
PREDICATION
1. Auxiliary verbs (to be, to do, to have, shall/will),
which are used in English in the corresponding
person and tense form to express the following
categorial meanings of the verb: a) the continuous
aspect I shall be reding
b) the analytical future tense form (текст
буде перекладений)
с) some subjunctive mood forms (якби я
був знав, я був би прийшов);
d) the pluperfect tense form, which fully
corresponds to the English past perfect. (Cf.
Ніби й задрімав був зразу, але щось
приверзлося, то й проснувся. (Головко)
Close to the auxiliary by their function (and
often by their lexical meaning, too) are
English and Ukrainian modal verbs. Their
number and nomenclature is larger in
English (allomorphism) than in Ukrainian
1. Linking verbs of
being, which do not
always have direct
equiv alents in English
and Ukrainian. Cf. to
be, to feel, to look, to
seem, to taste, to smell
— бути, виявлятися,
зватися, вважатися,
доводитися (Не looks
young/tired) or in
Ukrainian: Це зветься
роботою. Це здається
правдою).
Linking verbs of
becoming (not all of
which have equiva
lents in Ukrainian): to
become, to get, to grow,
to turn — ставати,
робитися (They grew
stronger/Вони стали
міцнішими. Ліс
зробився рудим.). Не
became a teacher — Він
став учителем. But:
He turned gray/ Він
посивів. Вона
постаріла. She grew
older.
Linking verbs of
remaining (to
remain, to keep, to
stay, to continue): He
remained
silent/satisfied. Він
зостався
задоволений. The
winter continued
damp and wet.
(Cronin) The weather
kept obstinately hot
and dry. (Wells)
Погода вперто
стояла жаркою і
сухою.