Писать / Написать (to write)

Infinitive (imperfective): писа́ть — "to write (in progress / habitually)" Infinitive (perfective): написа́ть — "to write (and finish), to write down" Type: first conjugation despite the -ать ending, with the consonant mutation с → ш running through the entire present tense

писа́ть looks like it should be a regular -ать verb (compare чита́ть → чита́ю), but it is not. It belongs to the first conjugation with a stem mutation: every present-tense form swaps с for ш — пишу́, пи́шешь, пи́шут — and the endings are the -е-/-у- set, not the -а- set. On top of that there is a stress jump that catches everyone: the 1sg пишу́ is end-stressed, but the rest of the paradigm pulls the stress back to пи́-. The perfective написа́ть just bolts the empty prefix на- onto the same stem, so it conjugates identically — it simply means the future instead of the present. This page lays out both members side by side.

Present tense (писа́ть, imperfective) — the с→ш mutation

A perfective verb has no present tense (that is the whole point of perfectivity), so only писа́ть has a present. The perfective написа́ть column shows the future, which has the very same endings.

Three things to internalise. First, с → ш throughout — there is no form with с in the present/future; the mutated stem пиш-/напиш- is total, not partial. Second, the endings are first conjugation (-у, -ешь, -ет, -ем, -ете, -ут), even though the infinitive ends in -ать; this is why "I read" is чита́ю but "I write" is пишу́. Third, the stress jump: пишу́ (end-stress) → пи́шешь, пи́шет, пи́шем, пи́шете, пи́шут (stem-stress). The same end-then-retreat pattern carries over to the perfective: напишу́ → напи́шешь.

Past tense

Both members form a regular, gender-marked past off the -а- stem. Stress stays on -са́-.

The aspect choice in the past is the usual one: писа́л = "was writing / used to write" (process or habit, no endpoint in view), написа́л = "wrote (and finished it), wrote it down" (a completed, result-bearing act).

Future tense

Because the two members differ in aspect, they build the future in two different ways — the cleanest demonstration of the whole aspect system on one stem.

• писа́ть (imperfective) → compound future: бу́ду писа́ть "I will be writing / will write (over time)."
• написа́ть (perfective) → simple future (the conjugated forms in the table above): напишу́ "I will write (and finish)."

Imperative

A live aspect contrast hides in the imperative. The perfective напиши́ asks for one specific, completed act ("write it / write me a line"); the imperfective пиши́ is more about the ongoing activity, and — as with all imperfectives — it is also the form for "keep writing / do write" and for negated commands ("don't write").

Participles and verbal adverb

The high-frequency form here is the perfective passive participle напи́санный ("written"), which you meet constantly — напи́санное письмо́ "a written letter," рома́н, напи́санный в XIX ве́ке "a novel written in the 19th century." Note the single -н- in the short form (напи́сано "it is written") versus -нн- in the long form. The imperfective verbal adverb пиша́ exists on paper but native speakers avoid it; use a когда́-clause instead.

Key uses & collocations

1. писа́ть + dative recipient

To say you write to someone, put the recipient in the dative — no preposition. This is the same dative-of-recipient that governs говори́ть кому́, звони́ть кому́; the wider pattern is on the dative verbs page.

2. писа́ть + instrument (на чём / чем)

The thing you write with goes in the instrumental; what you write on/in uses на/в. Писа́ть ру́чкой "to write with a pen," писа́ть в тетра́ди "to write in a notebook."

3. The prefixed derivatives — same stem, new meanings

The писа́ть stem is a workhorse for prefixation. Each prefix adds a directional or aspectual shade, and each forms its own aspect pair. The general logic of these prefixes is on the verb prefixes page.

Common Mistakes

Key Takeaways

• Present (писа́ть): пишу́ / пи́шешь / пи́шет / пи́шем / пи́шете / пи́шут — с → ш throughout, first-conjugation endings (not -аю), with the stress jump пишу́ → пи́шешь.
• Perfective написа́ть = the same stem + empty prefix на-; its conjugated forms (напишу́, напи́шешь…) are the simple future.
• Past: писа́л / написа́л etc. — писа́л = process/habit, написа́л = completed result.
• Future: imperfective бу́ду писа́ть, perfective simple напишу́.
• Imperative: пиши́ / напиши́ (perfective = one specific act; imperfective = keep writing / negated commands).
• Government: dative recipient (написа́ть ба́бушке), instrumental instrument (писа́ть ру́чкой).
• High-frequency participle: напи́санный "written" (short form напи́сано). Key derivatives: записа́ть (jot down), переписа́ть (rewrite), подписа́ть (sign).