Weather is the universal opener — and in Ukrainian it is built almost entirely from impersonal sentences with no subject at all: Хо́лодно ("it's cold"), Со́нячно ("it's sunny"), Йде дощ ("it's raining," literally "rain goes"). There is no "it" to fill the subject slot, the way English forces it into "it's raining." On top of that, weather talk leans on the impersonal future бу́де + adverb ("it'll be…") and on the instrumental for seasons (взи́мку, влі́тку). Read the exchange first, then we'll unpack why each form sounds native.
The dialogue
Андрі́й: Ну й пого́да сього́дні! Зра́нку було́ со́нячно, а зара́з хма́рно. What weather today! In the morning it was sunny, and now it's cloudy.
Окса́на: Так, і помі́тно похолода́ло. Здає́ться, бу́де дощ. Yeah, and it's noticeably got colder. Looks like it'll rain.
Андрі́й: Уже́ йде! Дивись, накрапа́є. До́бре, що я взяв парасо́льку. It already is! Look, it's drizzling. Good thing I took an umbrella.
Окса́на: А скі́льки сього́дні гра́дусів? And how many degrees is it today?
Андрі́й: Зара́з лиш плюс ві́сім. Для жо́втня прохоло́дно. Right now only plus eight. Chilly for October.
Окса́на: Бр-р, я люблю́, коли́ тепло́. Скорі́ше б лі́то. Brr, I love it when it's warm. Bring on summer.
Андрі́й: А я навпаки́ — взи́мку найкра́ще. Люблю́, коли́ па́дає сніг. And I'm the opposite — winter's the best. I love when snow falls.
Окса́на: Тобі́ не бува́є хо́лодно? Don't you get cold?
Андрі́й: Та ні, головне́ — те́пло вдягти́ся. А яка́ пого́да на за́втра? Not really — the main thing is to dress warmly. And what's the weather like for tomorrow?
Окса́на: Обіця́ють, що бу́де я́сно і тро́хи теплі́ше. They're promising it'll be clear and a bit warmer.
Line-by-line grammar
"It was sunny… now it's cloudy" — impersonal predicate adverbs
Weather states are predicative adverbs with no subject: со́нячно ("(it's) sunny"), хма́рно ("(it's) cloudy"). To put them in the past you add the neuter було́ ("(it) was"); the present needs no verb at all. There is no word for "it." See impersonal sentences and predicative adverbs.
Зра́нку було́ со́нячно, а зара́з хма́рно.
'In the morning it was sunny, and now it's cloudy.' — subjectless predicates; було́ marks past, the present needs no verb; зра́нку = 'in the morning.'
Помі́тно похолода́ло.
'It's noticeably got colder.' — похолода́ло is a subjectless impersonal verb, neuter -ло; no 'it.'
"It's raining" — Йде дощ, with дощ as the subject
Rain and snow are different: here Ukrainian does have a subject — the noun дощ ("rain") or сніг ("snow") — and the verb is the motion verb іти́ ("to go"): Йде дощ = "rain goes" = "it's raining." For snow you can also say па́дає сніг ("snow falls"). The verb agrees with the noun.
Уже́ йде! Дивись, накрапа́є.
'It already is (raining)! Look, it's drizzling.' — йде (3sg of іти́) with дощ understood; накрапа́є = 'it's spitting / drizzling.'
Люблю́, коли́ па́дає сніг.
'I love it when snow falls.' — сніг is the grammatical subject; па́дає agrees with it (3sg).
"Good thing I took an umbrella" — perfective past
До́бре, що я взяв парасо́льку: взяв is the perfective past of взя́ти ("to take") — one completed act — and парасо́льку is its accusative object (feminine -а → -у). The phrase До́бре, що… ("good thing that…") is a handy spoken frame.
До́бре, що я взяв парасо́льку.
'Good thing I took an umbrella.' — взяв perfective past (one act); парасо́льку accusative object.
"How many degrees?" — Скі́льки гра́дусів? and плюс / мі́нус
The temperature question is fixed: Скі́льки гра́дусів? — after скі́льки the noun goes genitive plural, hence гра́дусів. The reading itself is given with плюс or мі́нус: плюс ві́сім ("plus eight"), мі́нус п’ять ("minus five").
А скі́льки сього́дні гра́дусів?
'And how many degrees is it today?' — after скі́льки the noun is genitive plural: гра́дусів.
Зара́з лиш плюс ві́сім.
'Right now only plus eight.' — temperature with плюс; лиш ('only') is a casual short form of лише́.
Warm / cold as feelings — тепло́, хо́лодно, and the dative experiencer
Тепло́ and хо́лодно are the same impersonal adverbs, used both for the air ("it's warm") and for a person's sensation. When it's a person who feels cold, that person goes in the dative: Тобі́ не бува́є хо́лодно? ("don't you get cold?") — тобі́ is the dative of ти. The verb бува́є adds "tends to / sometimes."
Я люблю́, коли́ тепло́.
'I love it when it's warm.' — тепло́ is an impersonal predicate, no subject; коли́ = 'when.'
Тобі́ не бува́є хо́лодно?
'Don't you (ever) get cold?' — the experiencer is dative тобі́; бува́є adds a habitual 'tends to be.'
Seasons — the bare instrumental взи́мку, влі́тку
To say "in winter / in summer," Ukrainian uses single adverb-like words frozen from the instrumental of the season nouns: взи́мку (← зима́), влі́тку (← лі́то), plus навесні́ ("in spring") and восени́ ("in autumn"). They are one word, no preposition. See the instrumental of time and time and frequency adverbs.
Взи́мку найкра́ще.
'Winter's the best.' — взи́мку 'in winter' is a frozen instrumental-based adverb, one word, no preposition.
"What's the weather for tomorrow?" — на + accusative
Яка́ пого́да на за́втра? uses на + за́втра for a forecast directed at a future point — "the weather for tomorrow." The adjective яка́ agrees with feminine пого́да.
А яка́ пого́да на за́втра?
'And what's the weather like for tomorrow?' — яка́ agrees with feminine пого́да; на + за́втра points to the forecast day.
"It'll be clear" — the impersonal бу́де + adverb
The weather future is бу́де + adverb: бу́де я́сно ("it'll be clear"), бу́де тепло́ ("it'll be warm"). Still no subject — бу́де is the impersonal 3sg of бу́ти. The comparative теплі́ше ("warmer") works the same way. Обіця́ють, що… ("they're promising that…") is how Ukrainians attribute a forecast. See using the future.
Обіця́ють, що бу́де я́сно і тро́хи теплі́ше.
'They're promising it'll be clear and a bit warmer.' — impersonal бу́де + adverb я́сно; теплі́ше is the comparative of тепло́.
How this differs from English
English cannot make a sentence without a subject, so it props up an empty it: it's raining, it's cold, it'll be sunny. Ukrainian simply deletes that slot. Weather adjectives become subjectless adverbs (Хо́лодно, Со́нячно), the forecast is бу́де + adverb (Бу́де тепло́), and where English keeps the subject ("the rain is falling"), Ukrainian keeps the noun but runs it through a motion verb (Йде дощ, "rain goes"). The second trap is feelings: English says "I am cold," merging the air and the person; Ukrainian splits them — the air is хо́лодно (no subject), but I feel cold is Мені́ хо́лодно with the experiencer in the dative. Saying "Я хо́лодний" describes your temperature as an object, not your sensation, and sounds wrong.
Common Mistakes
❌ Воно́ дощи́ть.
Incorrect — Ukrainian doesn't insert a dummy 'it'; rain is expressed as Йде дощ.
✅ Йде дощ.
Correct — 'it's raining,' literally 'rain goes,' with дощ as the subject.
❌ Я хо́лодний.
Incorrect for 'I feel cold' — this describes your body's temperature as an object. Use the dative experiencer.
✅ Мені́ хо́лодно.
Correct — 'I feel cold,' experiencer in the dative + impersonal хо́лодно.
❌ У зи́мі я люблю́ сніг.
Incorrect — 'in winter' is the frozen one-word adverb взи́мку, not у + locative here.
✅ Взи́мку я люблю́ сніг.
Correct — взи́мку, the instrumental-based season adverb.
❌ Скі́льки сього́дні гра́дуси?
Incorrect — after скі́льки the noun must be genitive plural, гра́дусів.
✅ Скі́льки сього́дні гра́дусів?
Correct — genitive plural гра́дусів after скі́льки.
Phrases to reuse
- Йде дощ / Па́дає сніг — "it's raining / it's snowing"
- Хо́лодно / Тепло́ / Со́нячно / Хма́рно — "(it's) cold / warm / sunny / cloudy"
- Скі́льки гра́дусів? — "how many degrees?" (answer with плюс / мі́нус)
- Мені́ хо́лодно / тепло́ — "I feel cold / warm" (dative experiencer)
- Взи́мку / Влі́тку / Навесні́ / Восени́ — "in winter / summer / spring / autumn"
- Бу́де я́сно і теплі́ше — "it'll be clear and warmer" (impersonal forecast)
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- Impersonal and Subjectless SentencesB1 — The syntax of sentences with NO nominative subject — where English supplies a dummy 'it/they/you/one', Ukrainian drops the subject entirely and the logical argument (if any) surfaces as a dative or accusative: Темні́є, Ка́жуть, Тре́ба йти, Мені́ хо́лодно, Що роби́ти?
- Predicative Adverbs (Можна, Треба, Холодно)B1 — The words that ARE the predicate of a subjectless sentence — state predicatives with a dative experiencer (Мені́ хо́лодно 'I'm cold', Їй су́мно 'she's sad', Тут га́рно 'it's nice here') and modal predicatives of possibility and necessity (мо́жна 'one may', не мо́жна 'must not', тре́ба/потрі́бно 'must', слід 'should', ва́рто 'worth'). In the present there is NO verb 'to be' (Мені́ хо́лодно); past and future borrow було́ / бу́де (Було́ хо́лодно), and modals take a bare infinitive (Тре́ба йти).
- Instrumental of Time, Manner, and RouteB2 — Beyond means, the bare instrumental works as an adverb: it says WHEN (ра́нком, ве́чором, ні́ччю; весно́ю, лі́том — alongside the adverbs навесні́, влі́тку), HOW (швидки́ми кро́ками, го́лосом), and ROUTE (іти́ лі́сом, доро́гою, спуска́тися схо́дами) — so 'I walk through the park' is Я йду па́рком with no preposition where English needs 'through'.
- Using the Future (and Present-for-Future)B1 — When to use each future and where Ukrainian and English diverge. Perfective simple future for a single completed future result (Я зроблю́ це за́втра, Він при́йде о шо́стій). Imperfective future (бу́ду чита́ти / чита́тиму) for ongoing or repeated future action. The PRESENT-for-future with motion verbs and timetables (За́втра ї́ду до Ки́єва, По́їзд відхо́дить о п’я́тій). And the big divergence: after коли́ 'when' and якщо́ 'if' pointing to the future, Ukrainian uses the FUTURE — Коли́ при́йдеш, подзвони́ — where English keeps the present ('when you arrive').
- Adverbs of Time and FrequencyA2 — When and how often — the everyday set: за́раз/тепе́р 'now', по́тім 'then', вчо́ра/сього́дні/за́втра, plus the parts-of-day and season adverbs that are really frozen case-forms (вра́нці, уночі́, влі́тку, восени́), and the frequency scale за́вжди → ча́сто → і́нколи → рі́дко → ніко́ли. Two things English speakers miss: 'every day/week' is a single що- word (щодня́, щоти́жня), and ніко́ли 'never' forces double negation (Я ніко́ли не…).
- Aspect in the Future TenseA2 — English 'will read' is ambiguous; Ukrainian forces a choice. The PERFECTIVE future is the simple one-word form — прочита́ю, напишу́, зроблю́, куплю́ — for a single completed future result. The IMPERFECTIVE future is a two-piece form, either analytic (бу́ду чита́ти) or synthetic (чита́тиму), for an ongoing, repeated, or process-focused future. The perfective can NEVER use бу́ду — *бу́ду прочита́ти is impossible — because бу́ду builds only on imperfective infinitives.