Verbs
Verbs express a process, action, or condition of persons, animals and objects.
They are classified to the following categories:
According to meaning:
-
Full verbs
-
Action verbs (express an action)
- Reflexive
česať sa, umyť sa, učiť sa - Non-reflexive
čítať, písať, hovoriť, cestovať
- Reflexive
-
Stative verbs (express a status)
- Reflexive
tešiť sa, báť sa, cítiť sa - Non-reflexive
rásť, ochorieť, kvitnúť
- Reflexive
-
Action verbs (express an action)
-
Auxiliary verbs
chcieť, smieť, môcť, vedieť, mať (=mať povinnosť), byť (=existovať), začať, prestať, stať sa...
Action verbs are classified to the following categories:
-
Object verbs
- Transitive:
čítať (knihu), variť (polievku), kúpiť (dom) - Non-transitive:
rozprávať sa (s bratom), pripravovať sa (na vyučovanie)
- Transitive:
-
Non-object verbs
plakať, sedieť, cestovať
According to the aspect, they are classified as follows:
-
Perfective verbs (perfective aspect)
napísať, prečítať, dojesť, dopiť -
Imperfective verbs (imperfective aspect)
písať, čítať, jesť, piť
According to reflexivity they are classified as follows:
-
Reflexive
tešiť sa, báť sa, usmievať sa, ponáhľať sa -
Non-reflexive
kresliť, rásť, myslieť, chodiť
Conjugation of verbs
Verbs have different endings for each person, singular and plural. There are several conjugations – that is, groups of verbs that are all conjugated the same way. In Slovak, these conjugations are referred to by the verb that serves as a model for the pattern of endings used by the conjugation.
In Slovak there are three verb tenses: present (
Present tense | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural | |||||||
Infinitive | 1. person | 2. person | 3. person | 1. person | 2. person | 3. person | 2. person singular, imperative | 3. person singular, past tense |
br-ať | ber-iem | -ieš | -ie | -ieme | -iete | -ú | ber! | br-al |
chudn-úť | chudn-em | -eš | -e | -eme | -ete | -ú | chudn-i! | chud-ol |
chyt-ať | chyt-ám | -áš | -á | -áme | -áte | -ajú | chyt-aj! | chyt-al |
čes-ať | češ-em | -eš | -e | -eme | -ete | -ú | češ! | čes-al |
hyn-úť | hyn-iem | -ieš | -ie | -ieme | -iete | -ú | hyň! | hyn-ul |
krič-ať | krič-ím | -íš | -í | -íme | -íte | -ia | krič! | krič-al |
nies-ť | nes-iem | -ieš | -ie | -ieme | -iete | -ú | nes! | nies-ol |
prac-ovať | prac-ujem | -uješ | -uje | -ujeme | -ujete | -ujú | prac-uj! | prac-oval |
rob-iť | rob-ím | -íš | -í | -íme | -íte | -ia | rob! | rob-il |
rozum-ieť | rozum-iem | -ieš | -ie | -ieme | -iete | -ejú | rozum-ej! | rozum-el |
tr-ieť | tr-iem | -ieš | -ie | -ieme | -iete | -ú | tr-i! | tr-el |
vid-ieť | vid-ím | -íš | -í | -íme | -íte | -ia | viď! | vid-el |
ž-ať | žn-em | -eš | -e | -eme | -ete | -ú | žn-i! | ža-l |
žu-ť | žu-j-em | -eš | -e | -eme | -ete | -ú | žu-j! | žu-l |
Useful verbs:
byť (to be)
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja som | my sme |
ty si | vy ste |
on/ona/ono je | oni/ony sú |
bývať (to live)
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja bývam | my bývame |
ty bývaš | vy bývate |
on/ona/ono býva | oni/ony bývajú |
volať sa (to be called)
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja sa volám | my sa voláme |
ty sa voláš | vy sa voláte |
on/ona/ono sa volá | oni/ony sa volajú |
mať (to have)
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja mám | my máme |
ty máš | vy máte |
on/ona/ono má | oni/ony majú |
hovoriť (to speak, to talk)
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja hovorím | my hovoríme |
ty hovoríš | vy hovoríte |
on/ona/ono hovorí | oni/ony hovoria |
mať sa (to fare, to be [doing])
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja sa mám | my sa máme |
ty sa máš | vy sa máte |
on/ona/ono sa má | oni/ony sa majú |
“Ty” form and “vy” form
In Slovak, there are two different ways of addressing others:
- tykanie (informal form of address) - the "ty" form is used to speak to friends, children, family members, other students at school, etc.
- vykanie (formal form of address) – the "vy" form, a polite mode of address, is used to talk to adult strangers, by children addressing adults or students addressing teachers, at offices, in shops, etc.
“Ty” form (Informal address) - „ty “
Rozumieš/hovoríš po slovensky? (ty) Áno, rozumiem/hovorím po slovensky, ale ešte nie veľmi dobre. (ja)
“Vy” form (Formal address) - „vy “
Rozumiete/hovoríte po slovensky? (vy) Áno, rozumiem/hovorím po slovensky, ale veľmi málo. (ja) Prajete si ešte niečo? (vy) Nie, ďakujem. (ja)
Modal verbs
Modal verbs express the will, necessity, or possibility of an action. They are among the most frequently used verbs.
chcieť (to want)
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja chcem | my chceme |
ty chceš | vy chcete |
on / ona / ono chce | oni / ony chcú |
smieť (can, may)
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja smiem | my smieme |
ty smieš | vy smiete |
on / ona / ono smie | oni / ony smú |
môcť (can, to be able)
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja môžem | my môžeme |
ty môžeš | vy môžete |
on / ona / ono môže | oni / ony môžu |
musieť (must, to have to)
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja musím | my musíme |
ty musíš | vy musíte |
on / ona / ono musí | oni / ony musia |
mať (to have, should (to have an obligation to))
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja mám | my máme |
ty máš | vy máte |
on / ona / ono má | oni / ony majú |
vedieť (to know)
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
ja viem | my vieme |
ty vieš | vy viete |
on / ona / ono vie | oni / ony vedia |
Modal verb smieť
Smieme ísť von? | May I go out? |
Smiem vám ponúknuť kávu? | May I offer you a cup of coffee? |
Smiem sa hrať s ostatnými? | May I play with the others? |
The verb smieť is often used instead of the imperative ((ne)smieť + infinitive of a full verb):
Nechoď tak ďaleko! Nesmieš chodiť tak ďaleko! | Don't go so far! - You must not go so far! |
Nerob neporiadok! Nesmieš robiť neporiadok! | Don't make a mess! - You must not make a mess! |
Nenič hračky! Nesmieš ničiť hračky! | Don't destroy toys! - You must not destroy toys! |
Modal verb mať (meaning "to have to", "must")
The modal verb mať (=to have to, must) is conjugated like the full verb mať (to have).
Čo mám robiť? | What am I supposed to do? |
Dnes máš upratovať ty. | Today you must clean up. |
It is often used in the conditional mood:
Mal by si jesť veľa ovocia a zeleniny. | You should eat lots of fruit and vegetables. |
Mali by sme už ísť. | We should go now. |
Čo by som mal urobiť? | What should I do? |
Mal by si dlhšie spať. | You should sleep longer. |
Mali by ste sa učiť. | You should study. |
Mal by si sa sústrediť. | You should concentrate. |
Past tense
The past tense of verbs is formed from the infinitive. We remove the ending -ť and add the ending -l.
In the first and second persons, we add the appropriate form of the verb byť to this form:
The verb byť :
Negation:
Future tense
The verb byť :
Negation: ( nebyť )
Future tense of imperfective verbs
The future tense of these verbs is formed very easily:
Future tense of the verb byť + infinitive | nebyť + infinitive |
---|---|
NOTE: The verb
Future tense of perfective verbs
Perfective verbs express the future tense by definition. Therefore, there are no grammatical forms for the future tense of perfective verbs.
ja robím (imperfective)ja urobím (perfective) – future tense (although we do not use the formsbudem ,budeš ...)
Imperfective verb (infinitive) | Present tense | Future tense | Perfective verb (infinitive) | Present tense | Future tense |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
- | |||||
- | |||||
- | |||||
- |
Imperative
The imperative is formed from the third person plural.
Infinitive | Present tense | “Ty” form (Informal address) ( |
“Vy” form (Formal address) ( |
1. person pl. ( |
---|---|---|---|---|
skákať | ||||
Imperative of the verb byť :
ty buď! | Be! (singular) |
my buďme! | Let's be! |
vy buďte! | Be! (plural/formal) |
Examples:
Infinitive | “Ty” form (Informal address) ( |
“Vy” form (Formal address) ( |
1. person pl. ( |
---|---|---|---|
Conditional mode
The conditional mode expresses a condition that must be fulfilled for an action to take place. It is formed by adding the particle by to the respective form of a verb in the past tense:
Present tense | Past tense | Conditional mode |
---|---|---|
(I'm writing a letter.)
|
(I was writing a letter.)
|
(I would write a letter.)
|
(I have time.)
|
(I had time.)
|
(I would have time.)
|
It is most frequently is used in a complex sentence with the subordinating conjunction keby (if):
Písal by som list, keby som mal čas. | I would write a letter if I had time. |
Keby som chcel, išiel by som do kina. | If I wanted to, I would go to the cinema. |
Attention:
Písal by som list, keby bysom mal čas.Keby bysom chcel, išiel by som do kina.
The conjunction keby can only be followed by the past tense.
Active participle
Chlapec píše vetu. -
(práve teraz) píšuci chlapec the boy is writing
The active participle is formed from the 3rd person plural (oni/ony píšu) by adding the suffix -ci/ca/ce píšuci. It has the form of an adjective and is declined like cudzí.
Infinitive | Present tense | Active participle |
---|---|---|
a reading student
|
||
dancing children
|
||
a working man
|
||
a blind person
|
ON | ONI | ||
---|---|---|---|
ONA | ONY | ||
ONO |
Passive participle

Chlapec píše vetu. -
(práve teraz) písaná veta sentence (being) written
The passive participle is formed as follows: we remove the –ť ending from the infinitive of the verb písať and add the ending -ný (for some verbs the ending -ený, -tý) --> písaný / written.
All passive participles are declined like adjectives according to the model of pekný.
ON | ONI | ||
---|---|---|---|
ONA | ONY | ||
ONO |
Transitive and intransitive verbs
Verbs are divided into two different groups:
- Transitive verbs – verbs that have a direct object (i.e. an object in the accusative case without a preposition).
Žiak píše úlohu. Eva číta knihu. Nemám čas. Vidím moju sestru. Poznáš ju?
- Intransitive – verbs that do not have a direct object (i.e. an object in the accusative case without a preposition) but have an object in the accusative with a preposition or an object in any other case.
Rozprávame sa o prázdninách. Žiak sa pripravuje na vyučovanie.
Perfective and imperfective verbs
Most Slovak verbs can have two forms: perfective (the action has ended or is complete) and imperfective (the action has not yet ended). Example:
Imperfective – we don't know whether the action expressed by these verbs has already ended or whether it continues or will be repeated.
We don't know whether he has read the book to the end, or whether he will continue reading. | |
We don't know whether he is finished, or whether he will continue eating. | |
We don't know whether the letter is finished, or whether Jano will continue writing. |
Perfective - The action expressed by a verb in this form has been completed. It is mostly used with prefixes.
He has finished reading, the action has ended. | |
He has finished – he will not continue eating, he has eaten all the dumplings. | |
He has written – he will not continue writing, the letter is finished. |
čítať - dočítať jesť - dojesť písať - dopísať, napísať - ...
Examples:
imperfective | perfective |
---|---|
Note: you don't have to memorise all of these verb forms. Choose those that you need and use most frequently and learn them. The perfective/imperfective forms of other verbs can easily be found in a dictionary.
Difference between ísť and chodiť
ísť - once, one timechodiť - several times, repeatedly, regularly, often
now, once | |
what school he attends |
Chodíte často na Slovensko? Nie, teraz ideme prvýkrát. Ako často chodíš do zahraničia? Chodíš stále na tú istú školu? Kam ideš? Idem do kina. Chceš ísť so mnou? Chodíte radi na koncerty?
The future tense of these two verbs is formed differently.
Ja idem zajtra do školy. | I go to school tomorrow. |
Ja pôjdem zajtra do školy. | I'll go to school tomorrow. |
Ja chodím na strednú školu. | I attend a secondary school. |
Ja budem chodiť na strednú školu. | I will attend a secondary school. |
Interest:
Chceš ísť so mnou? | Do you want to go with me? |
Chceš so mnou chodiť? | Do you want to go out with me? |
Keep in mind the differences between these verbs.