Infinitives: дозволя́ти (imperfective) / дозво́лити (perfective) — "to allow, to permit, to let" Type: a regular suffix-derived aspect pair (imperfective -я́ти ↔ perfective -ити) whose perfective is stem-stressed throughout (дозво́-) while the imperfective shifts stress to the suffix (дозволя́-)
дозволя́ти / дозво́лити is the verb of permission, and it runs on a government pattern English speakers consistently mishandle: the person who is allowed goes in the DATIVE, and what they're allowed to do is an INFINITIVE. English "allow someone to do something" looks like an accusative object + infinitive, so learners reach for the accusative — but Ukrainian treats permission as something granted to a person, the same dative logic that drives дава́ти "give," дозволя́ти "allow," and забороня́ти "forbid." So it is дозво́лити ді́тям (dative) гуля́ти "allow the children to play," never дозво́лити діте́й. On top of the case lesson, the pair carries the everyday politeness formula *Дозво́льте… "Allow me / May I…" and feeds the impersonal -но sign (Тут дозво́лено пали́ти "Smoking is permitted here"). Stress is marked on every form below.
Present tense — imperfective дозволя́ти only
Only the imperfective has a present. дозволя́ти is a regular first-conjugation -я́ти verb, suffix-stressed on -ля́- throughout (дозволя́ю). There is no consonant mutation — the 1sg is the plain дозволя́ю.
| Person | дозволя́ти — PRESENT | English |
|---|---|---|
| я | дозволя́ю | I allow / am allowing |
| ти | дозволя́єш | you allow (sg.) |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | дозволя́є | he / she / it allows |
| ми | дозволя́ємо | we allow |
| ви | дозволя́єте | you allow (pl./formal) |
| вони́ | дозволя́ють | they allow |
The imperfective present is for rules, habits and standing permissions: Ця ві́за дозволя́є працюва́ти "This visa allows [you] to work" — a permission that holds generally, not a one-off act.
Ба́тьки не дозволя́ють їй гуля́ти до пі́зньої но́чі.
Her parents don't allow her to stay out late at night. (Standing rule — present дозволя́ють + dative їй + infinitive гуля́ти.)
Нови́й та́риф дозволя́є кори́стувачам зберіга́ти фа́йли в хма́рі.
The new plan lets users store files in the cloud. (General permission — дозволя́є + dative кори́стувачам + infinitive.)
Past tense — gendered
Both aspects build the regular gendered past in -в / -ла / -ло / -ли. The imperfective дозволя́в (suffix-stressed -ля́-) describes permission that held over time; the perfective дозво́лив (stem-stressed дозво́-) reports a single act of granting permission.
| Gender / number | дозволя́ти (impf) | дозво́лити (pf) |
|---|---|---|
| masculine (він) | дозволя́в | дозво́лив |
| feminine (вона́) | дозволя́ла | дозво́лила |
| neuter (воно́) | дозволя́ло | дозво́лило |
| plural (вони́) | дозволя́ли | дозво́лили |
Лі́кар наре́шті дозво́лив мені́ поверну́тися до тренува́нь.
The doctor finally allowed me to go back to training. (Single grant — perfective дозво́лив + dative мені́ + infinitive.)
Ра́ніше нам не дозволя́ли фотографува́ти в музе́ї.
They used to not allow us to take photos in the museum. (Ongoing past rule — imperfective дозволя́ли + dative нам.)
Future tense
The two aspects build the future in completely different ways — this is the heart of the aspect system.
Perfective дозво́лити — the simple (synthetic) future, fixed stem stress
The perfective has no present; its present-looking forms ARE its future. дозво́лити is a second-conjugation -ити verb, and the stress stays welded to the stem дозво́- in every person — there is no stress shift and no consonant mutation in the 1sg (дозво́лю, not *дозволю́).
| Person | дозво́лити — FUTURE | English |
|---|---|---|
| я | дозво́лю | I'll allow |
| ти | дозво́лиш | you'll allow (sg.) |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | дозво́лить | he / she / it will allow |
| ми | дозво́лимо | we'll allow |
| ви | дозво́лите | you'll allow (pl./formal) |
| вони́ | дозво́лять | they'll allow |
Якщо́ ти ви́бачишся, ма́ма дозво́лить тобі́ піти́ на свя́то.
If you apologise, Mum will let you go to the party. (Perfective simple future дозво́лить + dative тобі́ + infinitive.)
Imperfective дозволя́ти — both compound futures
The imperfective forms its future two ways, identical in meaning: analytic (бу́ду + infinitive) and synthetic -му. Both describe permission as a standing future arrangement.
| Person | Analytic (бу́ду + inf.) | Synthetic (-му) |
|---|---|---|
| я | бу́ду дозволя́ти | дозволя́тиму |
| ти | бу́деш дозволя́ти | дозволя́тимеш |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | бу́де дозволя́ти | дозволя́тиме |
| ми | бу́демо дозволя́ти | дозволя́тимемо |
| ви | бу́дете дозволя́ти | дозволя́тимете |
| вони́ | бу́дуть дозволя́ти | дозволя́тимуть |
Поки́ ти живе́ш у моє́му до́мі, я не бу́ду дозволя́ти таки́х ви́тівок.
As long as you live in my house, I won't be allowing such antics. (Imperfective future — a rule that will keep applying.)
Imperative — the polite Дозво́льте lives here
The perfective imperative is the everyday politeness formula: Дозво́ль (informal) / Дозво́льте (formal) "Allow me…, May I…, Excuse me…". The imperfective imperative is rarer and more like "go on allowing it." The 3rd person uses хай / неха́й.
| Addressee | дозволя́ти (impf) | дозво́лити (pf) |
|---|---|---|
| ти (informal) | дозволя́й | дозво́ль |
| ви (formal / plural) | дозволя́йте | дозво́льте |
| 3rd person (let…) | хай / неха́й дозволя́є | хай / неха́й дозво́лить |
Дозво́льте предста́вити вам на́шого ново́го коле́гу.
Allow me to introduce our new colleague to you. (The formal Дозво́льте + dative вам + infinitive — a staple of polite speech.)
Дозво́ль, я понесу́ твою́ су́мку.
Let me carry your bag. (Informal Дозво́ль + a clause — a friendly offer.)
Participles and verbal adverbs
The perfective yields the impersonal predicative дозво́лено "[it is] allowed / permitted" (see government §3 below), and the long-form passive participle дозво́лений "permitted" (used attributively: дозво́лена шви́дкість "the permitted speed"). The verbal adverbs дозволя́ючи / дозво́ливши are (literary / written).
Government & key uses
1. DATIVE person + INFINITIVE — the core pattern
The headline: the person granted permission is in the dative, and the permitted action is an infinitive. дозво́лити дру́гові (dat.) зайти́ (inf.) "allow a friend to come in." There is no accusative direct object of the permitted person — this is the same dative logic as the case government of verbs for give and allow, and a full pronoun table sits at dative uses.
Учи́телька дозво́лила у́чням ви́йти ра́ніше.
The teacher allowed the pupils to leave early. (Dative у́чням + infinitive ви́йти — the model pattern.)
2. дозволя́ти собі́ — "to allow oneself / afford"
With the reflexive dative собі́, the pair means "to allow oneself" — both literally (treating yourself) and in the money sense "to afford": не мо́жу дозво́лити собі́ таку́ доро́гу маши́ну "I can't afford such an expensive car." This is an everyday, high-frequency idiom.
Раз на рік ми дозволя́ємо собі́ відпу́стку біля мо́ря.
Once a year we allow ourselves a holiday by the sea. (дозволя́ти собі́ — the 'treat / afford' idiom, dative собі́.)
3. The impersonal -но: Це дозво́лено
The perfective feeds the impersonal predicative in -но: дозво́лено "[it is] permitted," a fixed, subjectless form used on signs and in regulations. It pairs with the dative of whoever is permitted and an infinitive of the action: Тут дозво́лено фотографува́ти "Photography is permitted here." This is the affirmative counterpart of the prohibition забороне́но — for the full pattern see the -но/-то impersonal.
Ді́тям до шести́ ро́ків дозво́лено прохо́дити безкошто́вно.
Children under six are allowed to enter free of charge. (Impersonal дозво́лено + dative ді́тям + infinitive — sign/regulation register.)
Common Mistakes
❌ Я дозволя́ю мою́ дити́ну гра́тися надво́рі.
Government error — the allowed person is DATIVE, not accusative: Я дозволя́ю мої́й дити́ні гра́тися надво́рі.
✅ Я дозволя́ю дити́ні гра́тися надво́рі.
I let my child play outside — dative дити́ні + infinitive.
❌ За́втра я бу́ду дозво́лити тобі́ піти́.
Aspect/future error — perfective дозво́лити already IS the future; never after бу́ду: За́втра я дозво́лю тобі́ піти́.
✅ За́втра я дозво́лю тобі́ піти́.
Tomorrow I'll let you go — perfective simple future дозво́лю.
❌ Я дозволю́ тобі́ це зроби́ти.
Wrong stress — дозво́лити is stem-stressed throughout: the 1sg is дозво́лю, not 'дозволю́': Я дозво́лю тобі́ це зроби́ти.
✅ Я дозво́лю тобі́ це зроби́ти.
I'll let you do this — stem-stress дозво́лю.
❌ Дозво́льте мене́ предста́витися.
The pronoun is dative, not accusative: Дозво́льте мені́ предста́витися.
✅ Дозво́льте мені́ предста́витися.
Allow me to introduce myself — dative мені́.
❌ Я не мо́жу дозво́лити цю маши́ну.
The 'afford' idiom needs the reflexive собі́: Я не мо́жу дозво́лити собі́ цю маши́ну.
✅ Я не мо́жу дозво́лити собі́ цю маши́ну.
I can't afford this car — дозво́лити собі́.
Key Takeaways
- Suffix pair: imperfective дозволя́ти (present: дозволя́ю, дозволя́єш, дозволя́є, дозволя́ємо, дозволя́єте, дозволя́ють) vs perfective дозво́лити (future: дозво́лю, дозво́лиш, дозво́лить, дозво́лимо, дозво́лите, дозво́лять).
- Stress: the perfective is fixed stem-stress дозво́- throughout; the imperfective is suffix-stressed дозволя́-.
- Government — the key fact: DATIVE person + INFINITIVE (дозволя́ти ді́тям гуля́ти), never an accusative.
- дозволя́ти собі́ = "allow oneself / afford"; the polite Дозво́льте… = "Allow me / May I…".
- The perfective feeds the impersonal -но sign дозво́лено "[it is] permitted" — the affirmative twin of забороне́но "forbidden."
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- Verb Reference: Забороняти / Заборонити (to forbid)B2 — Complete conjugation-and-usage reference for the aspect pair забороня́ти / заборони́ти 'to forbid, to ban'. Covers the full imperfective present (забороня́ю), the perfective simple future with its MOBILE stress (забороню́ → заборо́ниш), the gendered past (заборони́в), both imperfective futures, the imperative, the famous impersonal -но signs Курити заборонено / Вхід заборонено, and the government: DATIVE person + infinitive.
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