The Simple Past Tense
Talking about actions that happened and finished in the past uses the simple past tense. This is formed using the past participle of the verb, which ends in -ў or -л (for masculine singular), -ла (for feminine singular), -ло (for neuter singular), or -лі (for plural of all genders). The ending of this form changes to match the gender and number of the subject. The corresponding past tense form of the verb быць is generally omitted in modern Belarusian.
Subject Gender/Number determines ending:
- Masculine Singular: -ў or -л (e.g., Ён чыта́ў / Ён нёс) (He read / He carried)
- Feminine Singular: -ла (e.g., Яна́ чыта́ла) (She read)
- Neuter Singular: -ло (e.g., Яно́ чыта́ла) (It read)
- Plural (all genders): -лі (e.g., Яны́ чыта́лі) (They read)
Examples: Учо́ра я працава́ў (masc.) (Yesterday I worked). Учо́ра яна́ працава́ла (fem.) (Yesterday she worked). Мы ба́чылі фільм (We saw a film). Яны́ прыбы́лі по́зна (They arrived late).