Welcome to the course!
This grammar explanation will be quite thorough, which is essential for understanding the Belarusian language, especially if you do not speak any Slavic language, as you might not easily grasp the logic behind certain grammatical structures otherwise.
However, if you are already familiar with a Slavic language and understand how to use the verb "to be," determine noun gender, and other fundamental concepts explained here, feel free to skip ahead.
Conjugation of 'Byti' (To Be)
The verb "to be" (быць) is essential for talking about existence or identity. Its present tense forms are used to say "I am," "you are," "he is," etc., or to indicate where something is located. The forms for the present tense are:
- Я ёсць (I am)
- Ты ёсць (You are, singular informal)
- Ён/Яна/Яно ёсць (He/She/It is)
- Мы ёсць (We are)
- Вы ёсць (You are, plural or singular formal)
- Яны ёсць (They are)
While the full present tense forms exist, they are often omitted in modern Belarusian, similar to Ukrainian and Russian, especially when connecting a noun or pronoun subject to a noun or adjective predicate.
- Examples: Я студэнт (I am a student). Мая сястра добрая (My sister is good). Мы добрыя сябры (We are good friends). Яны тут (They are here).
How to Determine the Gender of a Word
Belarusian nouns belong to one of three genders: Masculine, Feminine, or Neuter. Knowing the gender is crucial because it affects the endings of adjectives and other words used with the noun. Generally, the gender is evident from the noun's ending in its basic form (nominative singular):
- Masculine: Most nouns ending in a consonant are masculine (e.g., стол - table, настаўнік - teacher). Some nouns ending in -ь are masculine (e.g., дзень - day).
- Feminine: Most nouns ending in -а or -я are feminine (e.g., жанчына - woman, кніга - book, зямля - earth/land). Some nouns ending in -ь are feminine (e.g., ноч - night).
- Neuter: Most nouns ending in -о, -е, or -я (after a soft consonant or vowel) are neuter (e.g., акно - window, поле - field, мора - sea).
- Keep in mind: There are some exceptions to these rules, especially with nouns ending in -ь, where gender needs to be memorized.
The Nominative Case: The Subject and Naming
The Nominative case is the basic form of a noun or adjective, primarily used for the subject of a sentence (who or what performs the action) or simply to name things. This is the form you will find words in dictionaries.
Nouns: Singular forms follow the gender rules described above. Plural nouns often end in -ы, -і, or -а/-я.
- Examples: Singular: стол (m), жанчына (f), акно́ (n). Plural: сталы́, жа́нчыны, во́кны.
Adjectives: Agree in gender and number with the noun they describe. Adjectives have different endings for hard and soft stems.
- Hard Stem Examples: Singular: до́бры (m), до́брая (f), до́брае (n). Plural: до́брыя (all genders).
- Soft Stem Examples: Singular: сíні (m), сíняя (f), сíняе (n). Plural: сíнія (all genders).
Examples: До́бры дом стары́ (A good house is old). Зялёныя палі́ зялёныя (Green fields are green). Прыго́жыя жа́нчыны гаво́раць (Beautiful women are speaking). Сíнія во́чы прыго́жыя (Blue eyes are beautiful).
Demonstrative Pronouns (Nominative) and Why Use Them
Demonstrative pronouns help us specify particular nouns, similar to using "this" or "that" in English. In the Nominative case, they must agree in gender and number with the noun they refer to. Using them helps to clarify exactly which item you mean from a group.
- Singular: гэ́ты (m), гэ́тая (f), гэ́тае (n) - (this) / той (m), тая́ (f), тое (n) - (that)
- Plural: гэ́тыя (all genders) - (these) / тыя́ (all genders) - (those)
- Examples: Гэ́ты дом вялі́кі (This house is big). Тая́ кнíга мая́ (That book is mine). Тое наша мястэ́чка (That is our small town). Гэ́тыя лю́дзі вясёлыя (These people are cheerful).