Russian Perfective and Imperfective

This often comes as a setback for students of the Russian language. Russian verbs come in pairs, there is a counterpart of almost every Russian verb. These two verbs approximately mean the same thing, but communicate very different messages and nuances. So you need to know two verbs for every verb, and the conjugations for each.

Result or process

Russian verbs are either perfective (совершенный вид, св) or imperfective (несовершенный вид, нсв) and thus form pairs. The first expresses result (a completed action), the second speaks of the process, unfinished or repeated action. Similar to the difference between reading and finishing a book.

I am reading a book (right now, every day, for two hours, etc.): Я читаю книгу, from verb читать (imperfective). I finish a book (I read till at the end, I read it three times, etc.): Я прочитал книгу, from verb прочитать (perfective). And with Я прочитаю, you say you will finish it.

Verb pairs and how to tell them apart

The two verbs of the pair aren’t always easily distinguishable, as was the case with читать and прочитать. However, often you can tell them apart by the prefix, as in видеть – увидеть (to see), играть – сыграть (to play) and расти – вырасти (to grow). The verb with prefix will almost always be the perfective of the two; покупать – купить (to buy) is an exception.

These are some common verb pairs (imperfective – perfective):

• брать – взять (to take)
• говорить – сказать (to speak, say)
• давать – дать (to give)
• делать – сделать (to do)
• думать – подумать (to think)
• знать – узнать (to know)
• изучать – выучить (to learn)
• платить – заплатить (to pay)
• покупать – купить (to buy)
• пить – выпить (to drink)
• помнить – запомнить (to remember)
• помогать – помочь (to help)
• понимать – понять (to understand)
• работать – поработать (to work)
• сидеть – сесть (to sit)
• слышать – услышать (to hear)
• смотреть – посмотреть (to look)
• спрашивать – спросить (to ask)
• становиться – стать (to become)
• учить – выучить (to learn)
• ходить – сходить (to walk, go)
• хотеть – захотеть (to want)

One Pair of Verbs: Twenty Conjugations

Since ‘result’ always refers to past or future tense (I have read the book or I will read it), the perfective verb has no (conjugations in) present tense. We already have the imperfective counterpart for that. It too has (conjugations in) past tense; for future tense you conjugate (only) the verb to be. Both я читал (I read, was reading) and я буду читать (I will read) speak of the process or of a repeated/unfinished action.

All this leads to every verb pair having 20 conjugations. And often, you will just have to memorize them, for many conjugations are not predictable. See for example this one, from давать and дать (to give).

More on multiple channels. Here’s a selection, ranked from new to old. 

Amazing Russian

Verbal Aspect in Contrast. Part 1: Imperfective Present vs. Perfective Past
(2020, 16 m)

See also

• Part 2: Imperfective Past vs. Perfective Past (2017, 16 m)
• Part 3: Imperfective Present vs. Perfective Future (2017, 14 m)
• Part 4: Two Future Tenses (2017, 11 m)
• Part 5: Multiple Events (2017, 16 m)

О русском по-русски

Делать или сделать? | Глаголы НСВ и СВ. Настоящее-прошедшее время
(2019, 18 m)

Also check Урок 2. Буду делать или сделаю? | Глаголы НСВ и СВ. Будущее время (2019, 18 m) and Инфинитив НСВ или СВ? || Глаголы НСВ и СВ (2020, 21 m).

Live Russian

Clues To Perfective and Imperfective Verbs in Russian
(2019, 6 m)

See also Imperfective / perfective verbs: how to spot (2018, 9 m), Perfective or Imperfective / Practice (2018, 12 m) and from recent (2021) multiple livestreams. From the introduction to more recent:

• Imperfective vs Perfective / main concept (71 m)
• Imperfective vs Perfective / future tense (59 m)
• Imperfective vs Perfective / future tense (65 m)
• Imperfective vs Perfective / future tense (51 m)

and hurray, then two songs too, on заказывать – заказать and брать – взять.

Russian grammar

Verbal Aspect in Russian: an Introduction
(2013, 3 m)
See also Verbal Aspect in Russian (II): Forms (2013, 5 m).

More Russian Perfective and Imperfective

Watch

• Perfective vs Imperfective in Russian (Prosto Russian, 2021, 6 m)
• The perfective and imperfective aspects of russian verbs (NovaMova, 2021, 7 m)
• Russian Grammar: Imperfective/Perfective pairs in Russian (Anna Cher, 2020, 16 m)
• Russian Perfective & Imperfective verbs | Verb Aspects in Russian Language (Russian with Nastya, 2020, 17 m)
• Russian verbs aspects – live lesson (Real Russian Club, 2020, 52 m)
• Aspect of Russian verbs. Perfective and imperfective verbs (Russian with Tanya, 2020, 16 m)
• Introduction to Russian Verbal Aspect (Russian Through Propaganda, 2020, 69 m)
• Russian verbs. Aspect (Naya Polo, 2019, 7 m)
• Perfective & Imperfective verbs through special word Раньше (LRW Alfia, 2019, 12 m), zie ook Learn Russian future tense of perfective verbs (2020, 12 m)
• Aspects in the Past Tense | Russian Language (Be Fluent in Russian, 2019, 8 m), zie ook Perfective VS Imperfective (2017, 9 m)
• Russian Future Tense: Formation and Usage / Imperfective and Perfective (Russian Language in Detail, vh. RussianWithRussian, 2017, 7 m)
• Глаголы несовершенного и совершенного вида (говорим по-русски, vh. русский с носителем, 2017, 13 m)
• A Little Bit Of Grammar. Imperfective vs Perfective (Russian from Russia, 2016, 13 m), zie ook Future Imperfective vs Perfective (2016, 14 m)
• Verbs. Perfective and Imperfective. Russian grammar (Ru-Land Club, 2016, 7 m)
• Russian – perfective and imperfective verbs, aspect (A. Romaker, 2015, 15 m)

Check/read

• Aspects of Russian verbs (Enjoy Russian, 2019)
• Aspects of Russian Verbs – Imperfective and Perfective (Learn Russian)
• Aspects of Verbs in Russian (Russian Lesson)
• Aspect of the Verb (Master Russian)
• Grammatical aspect in Slavic languages (Wikipedia)
• Het aspect van het werkwoord (Russische grammatica, 2012)
• Perfective & Imperfective Verbs in a nutshell (Explore Russian, 2016)
• Perfectief aspect (Wikipedia)
• Russian verb aspects (Learn Russian Step by Step)
• Russian Verbs – Aspect (RussianLessons.net)
• Russian Verbs – Perfective and Imperfective Aspects (Russian Language Blog, 2011)
• Russian Verbs That Can Be Both Perfective and Imperfective (Russificate, 2018)
• Verbal Aspect (Russian For Everyone)
• Verb Aspects in Russian (RussianTutoring.com)
• What Makes Russian So Hard: Perfective and Imperfective Verbs (Proper Russian)

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Last updated March 26, 2026