Introduction
<< Chapter 13:  Miscellaneious Verbs and Verb Irregularities
Chapter 15:  Past Tenses >>

Chapter 14

Reflexive Verbs

14.1        Use of reflexive verbs

    The one characteristic that all reflexive verbs have in common is that they cannot take a direct object in the accusative case.  Very often, the fact that the verb is reflexive means that the subject of the sentence is what is being acted upon.

Мяч кідаецца ім.
 The ball is thrown by him.
Яны баяцца.
 They are afraid.


14.2        Conjugation of reflexive verbs

     Reflexive verbs in general are all formed from non-reflexive verbs in the same way.  Below are given examples of both type 1 and type 2 reflexive verbs.  The reader will notice that they are formed in the exact same way.  An example of a type 1 reflexive verb is старацца, to try, and an example of a type 2 reflexive verb is туліцца, to press against.

стараюся
 стараемся
тулюся
 тулімся
стараешся
 стараецеся
тулішся
 туліцеся
стараецца
 стараюцца
туліцца
 туляцца



1st Pers. Sing.
 2nd Pers. Sing.
падабацца
 to be pleasing
 падабаюся
 падабаешся
спадзявацца
 to hope
 спадзяюся
 спадзяешся
баяцца
 to fear
 баюся
 баішся
нарадзіцца
 to be born
 нараджуся
 народзішся


14.3        Reflexive past tense, participles, and gerunds

     All other parts of the verb are formed like normal verbs, with the suffix -ся placed on the end.

Ён стараўся дапамагаць.
 He tried to help.
Ляжалі абняўшыся і маўчалі.
 They lay hugging and were quiet.
Міхась быстра падняўся з зямлі, не аглядаючыся вакол.
 Michael quickly got up off the ground, not looking around.


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Chapter 15:  Past Tenses >>

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Copyright (c)  2004  Christian Cardell Marchant.
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