Infinitive (imperfective): ї́хати — "to go (by vehicle), to ride, to drive, to travel" Perfective partner: поїхати — "to set off (by vehicle), to go off, to leave" Type: a unidirectional (determinate) verb of motion; its multidirectional twin is ї́здити
ї́хати is how you "go" whenever wheels (or hooves, or rails) are involved — by car, bus, train, bike or horse. It is the wheeled counterpart of іти́, the verb of going on foot, and like every Ukrainian motion verb it comes in a pair: unidirectional ї́хати (one trip, one direction, right now) versus multidirectional ї́здити (back-and-forth, habitual, round trips). This page is about ї́хати and its perfective поїхати; the multidirectional half lives on the ї́хати vs ї́здити page. Two things trip up English speakers: the destination goes in в / на + accusative, and the vehicle goes in the bare instrumental — ї́хати по́тягом "to go by train," literally "to go train-wise." Stress is marked on every form below.
Present tense — soft-stem ї́ду / ї́деш…
ї́хати has a suppletive present stem їд- (the -х- of the infinitive disappears). The endings are the first-conjugation hard set, but the stem stays soft after the iotated ї. Stress is fixed on the ї́- throughout — the same place as in the infinitive.
| Person | ї́хати — PRESENT | English |
|---|---|---|
| я | ї́ду | I go / am going (by vehicle) |
| ти | ї́деш | you go (sg.) |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | ї́де | he / she / it goes |
| ми | ї́демо | we go |
| ви | ї́дете | you go (pl./formal) |
| вони́ | ї́дуть | they go |
Because ї́хати is unidirectional, the present means a single ongoing trip ("I'm on my way, in the vehicle") or — crucially — a planned future trip stated as a present, exactly as English says "I'm flying to Kyiv tomorrow."
Я ї́ду на робо́ту авто́бусом, це́ хвили́н два́дцять.
I go to work by bus, it's about twenty minutes. (Present ї́ду + destination на робо́ту + vehicle авто́бусом in the instrumental.)
За́втра ми ї́демо до Ки́єва на ви́хідні.
Tomorrow we're going to Kyiv for the weekend. (Planned future expressed as a present — a hallmark of the unidirectional verb.)
Ти ї́деш сього́дні в село́ чи лиша́єшся в мі́сті?
Are you going to the village today or staying in the city? (2sg ї́деш — one specific trip.)
Past tense — gendered ї́хав / ї́хала / ї́хало / ї́хали
The past is built off the infinitive stem їха- and, like every Ukrainian past, agrees in gender and number, not person. Stress stays on the ї́-.
| Gender / number | ї́хати (impf) | поїхати (pf) |
|---|---|---|
| masculine | ї́хав | пої́хав |
| feminine | ї́хала | пої́хала |
| neuter | ї́хало | пої́хало |
| plural | ї́хали | пої́хали |
The aspect split is sharp here. Imperfective ї́хав = "was travelling / was on the way" (the process, an interruptible trip); perfective пої́хав = "set off / left / went and is gone" (the departure as a completed fact).
Поки́ я ї́хав до́дому, поча́вся си́льний дощ.
While I was driving home, heavy rain started. (Imperfective ї́хав — the trip in progress, a background to another event.)
Він пої́хав до батькі́в і поверну́вся ті́льки в неді́лю.
He went off to his parents' and only came back on Sunday. (Perfective пої́хав — the departure as a single completed fact.)
Future tense
Perfective поїхати — the simple future
The present-tense forms of the perfective carry future meaning: пої́ду = "I'll set off / I'll go." Same soft їд-stem, with the prefix по-. The stress shifts onto the stem of the prefixed form (пої́ду).
| Person | поїхати — FUTURE | English |
|---|---|---|
| я | пої́ду | I'll set off / go |
| ти | пої́деш | you'll set off |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | пої́де | he / she / it will set off |
| ми | пої́демо | we'll set off |
| ви | пої́дете | you'll set off |
| вони́ | пої́дуть | they'll set off |
Улі́тку ми пої́демо до мо́ря, я вже́ купи́ла квитки́.
In summer we'll go to the seaside, I've already bought the tickets. (Perfective future пої́демо — a single planned trip.)
Imperfective ї́хати — both compound futures
The imperfective forms its future either analytically (бу́ду + infinitive) or synthetically (the -му future, glued onto the infinitive). With a unidirectional verb the imperfective future is comparatively rare — it stresses the process of being on the road — but it is fully grammatical.
| Person | Analytic (бу́ду + inf.) | Synthetic (-му) |
|---|---|---|
| я | бу́ду ї́хати | ї́хатиму |
| ти | бу́деш ї́хати | ї́хатимеш |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | бу́де ї́хати | ї́хатиме |
| ми | бу́демо ї́хати | ї́хатимемо |
| ви | бу́дете ї́хати | ї́хатимете |
| вони́ | бу́дуть ї́хати | ї́хатимуть |
Коли́ ти бу́деш ї́хати повз апте́ку, купи́, будь ла́ска, аспіри́н.
When you're driving past the pharmacy, please buy some aspirin. (Imperfective future бу́деш ї́хати — the journey as a span of time, a frame for another action.)
Imperative
The imperative of ї́хати is built off the їд-stem: їдь (2sg), ї́дьте (2pl/formal). The perfective поїдь / поїдьте exists but the imperfective їдь is the everyday "go / get going." A common idiomatic alternative for "let's go / move it" is поїхали! (the past-tense form used as a hortative).
| Addressee | ї́хати (impf) | поїхати (pf) |
|---|---|---|
| ти (informal) | їдь | поїдь |
| ви (formal / plural) | ї́дьте | пої́дьте |
| 3rd person (let…) | хай / неха́й ї́де | хай / неха́й пої́де |
Їдь обере́жно, доро́ги слизькі́!
Drive carefully, the roads are slippery! (Informal imperative їдь.)
Поїхали, бо́ ми вже́ запі́знюємося!
Let's go, we're already late! (Idiomatic hortative поїхали! — a past-tense form used as 'let's go'.)
Participles and verbal adverbs
| Form | ї́хати |
|---|---|
| imperfective verbal adverb | ї́дучи "(while) travelling / on the way" |
| perfective verbal adverb | пої́хавши "having set off / once gone" |
The imperfective verbal adverb ї́дучи is genuinely useful in narrative — Ї́дучи на по́їзді, він чита́в "Riding on the train, he was reading." Both forms are (literary / written) in flavour; in speech a коли́-clause ("коли я ї́хав…") is more common.
Key uses & case government
1. Destination — в / на + accusative
Where you are going stands in в / на + accusative (motion towards a goal), never the locative. Choose на with open spaces, events and certain regions (на робо́ту, на мо́ре, на ву́лицю); в / у with most enclosed or bounded places (в мі́сто, в село́); and до + genitive for going to a person, a named town or a country (до Ки́єва, до лі́каря). The "motion vs. location" split has its own page.
Він ча́сто ї́здить у відрядження́ до Льво́ва.
He often goes on business trips to Lviv. (до + genitive Льво́ва for a named city; here ї́здить — habitual round trips.)
2. Vehicle — the bare instrumental
The means of transport goes in the instrumental with no preposition: ї́хати по́тягом "by train," авто́бусом "by bus," маши́ною "by car," велосипе́дом "by bike." This is the instrumental of means — the vehicle is the instrument by which you move. (You may also hear на по́тязі / на маши́ні with на + locative, but the bare instrumental is the cleaner, default pattern.) See the instrumental of means and manner.
До це́нтру шви́дше ї́хати метро́, ніж маши́ною.
It's faster to get to the centre by metro than by car. (Vehicle in the instrumental — метро́ is indeclinable, маши́ною shows the ending.)
3. ї́хати vs ї́здити — one trip vs. round trips
This is the heart of the motion system. ї́хати (unidirectional) = a single, ongoing, one-way trip now or planned. ї́здити (multidirectional) = repeated, habitual or round-trip motion (ка́жен день ї́жджу "I commute every day"; ми ї́здили в Карпа́ти "we went to the Carpathians and came back"). A finished there-and-back trip in the past is ї́здив, not пої́хав. The full contrast, with the past-tense subtlety, is on the ї́хати vs ї́здити page.
Щолі́та ми ї́здимо в го́ри, а цього́ ро́ку пої́демо до мо́ря.
Every summer we go to the mountains, but this year we'll go to the seaside. (Habitual ї́здимо vs. a single planned trip пої́демо.)
Common Mistakes
❌ Я іду́ до Ки́єва на по́тязі.
Wrong motion verb — a journey you take by train uses ї́хати, not іти́ ('go on foot'): Я ї́ду до Ки́єва по́тягом.
✅ Я ї́ду до Ки́єва по́тягом.
I'm going to Kyiv by train.
❌ Ми ї́демо на по́тяг.
Case/sense error — for the means of transport use the bare INSTRUMENTAL, not на + accusative: Ми ї́демо по́тягом. (на по́тяг would mean 'onto the train'.)
✅ Ми ї́демо по́тягом.
We're going by train.
❌ Учо́ра я пої́хав до ба́бусі й верну́вся вве́чері.
Aspect error — a completed THERE-AND-BACK trip is the multidirectional ї́здив, not perfective пої́хав (which leaves you 'gone'): Учо́ра я ї́здив до ба́бусі.
✅ Учо́ра я ї́здив до ба́бусі й верну́вся вве́чері.
Yesterday I went to grandma's and came back in the evening.
❌ Я ї́жу до робо́ти авто́бусом.
Wrong stem — that's the verb 'eat'. The present of ї́хати is ї́ду / ї́деш / ї́де: Я ї́ду до робо́ти авто́бусом.
✅ Я ї́ду до робо́ти авто́бусом.
I go to work by bus.
❌ Вона́ ї́хав до мо́ря ці́ле лі́то.
Agreement error — the past agrees with gender; a female subject takes ї́хала: Вона́ ї́хала.
✅ Вона́ ї́здила до мо́ря ці́ле лі́то.
She travelled to the seaside all summer. (Repeated trips → multidirectional ї́здила.)
Key Takeaways
- ї́хати = go by any vehicle (car, bus, train, bike, horse); іти́ is for going on foot.
- Present: ї́ду / ї́деш / ї́де / ї́демо / ї́дете / ї́дуть — soft їд-stem, stress on ї́-; also expresses a planned future trip (за́втра ї́ду до Ки́єва).
- Past: gendered ї́хав / ї́хала / ї́хало / ї́хали; perfective пої́хав "set off and gone."
- Future: perfective пої́ду "I'll set off"; imperfective бу́ду ї́хати / ї́хатиму for the journey as a process.
- Government: destination in в / на + accusative or до + genitive; vehicle in the bare instrumental (по́тягом, маши́ною).
- ї́хати vs ї́здити: one current/planned trip vs. habitual or round-trip motion; a finished there-and-back past is ї́здив, not пої́хав.
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- Їхати vs Їздити (Go by Vehicle)A2 — The vehicle-motion pair. ЇХАТИ (їду, їдеш; past їхав) = ONE trip by vehicle, now or planned: Я їду до Києва; Завтра їду до Львова. ЇЗДИТИ (їжджу [note дж], їздиш; past їздив) = habitual/repeated, commute, or round-trip: Я їжджу на роботу автобусом; Учора я їздив до бабусі. The means of transport is INSTRUMENTAL (потягом, автобусом, машиною), not a 'by'-phrase.
- Піти, Поїхати and the Inceptive По-B1 — The high-frequency inceptive по- verbs that mean 'set off / head off'. ПІТИ́ (perfective, по+іти́): set out on foot — Він пішо́в додо́му 'he went/left home', Я піду́ за́втра 'I'll go tomorrow', and the idiomatic Ході́мо! / Пішли́! 'let's go!'. ПОЇ́ХАТИ (perfective): set off by vehicle — Вони́ пої́хали до Льво́ва 'they went/left for Lviv'. These are the DEFAULT way to say someone 'went (off)' as a single completed departure — distinct from round-trip ходи́в and on-the-way ішо́в.
- 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'.
- Motion vs Location: The Case SwitchA2 — The three-way pivot at the centre of Ukrainian prepositions: куди? (motion toward → accusative: іду в шко́лу, кладу́ на стіл, сів за стіл), де? (location → locative with в/на, instrumental with за/під/над: я в шко́лі, лежи́ть на столі́, сиди́ть за столо́м), and зві́дки? (origin → genitive: зі шко́ли, від ліка́ря). The same preposition keeps its shape; only the case changes — в шко́лу, в шко́лі, зі шко́ли differ by case alone — so mastering the куди/де/зві́дки question is the master key to the whole preposition system.
- Іти / Піти (to go on foot / set off)A2 — Complete conjugation-and-usage reference for іти́·йти / піти́ 'to go on foot, to set off'. Covers the full present (іду́, іде́ш… with post-vowel йду / йде́ш alternants), the suppletive gendered past (ішо́в·йшов / ішла́ / ішло́ / ішли́; perfective пішо́в / пішла́), the perfective inceptive future піду́ / пі́деш…, the imperative (іди́ / іді́ть, the everyday Пішли́! / Ході́мо! 'let's go'), and the verb's place in the motion system: UNIDIRECTIONAL іти́ paired with multidirectional ходи́ти, with куди́ + в/на + accusative for destination.
- Приїжджати / Приїхати (to arrive by vehicle)B1 — Complete conjugation-and-usage reference for приїжджа́ти / приї́хати 'to arrive by vehicle' — the prefixed motion pair built on the at-the-goal prefix при-. Covers the -жджа- present приїжджа́ю / приїжджа́єш, the gendered past приїжджа́в / приї́хав, both imperfective futures and the perfective simple future приї́ду, the imperative, and the government: destination in до + genitive (приї́хати до Ки́єва) or в / на + accusative, vehicle in the bare instrumental (приї́хати по́тягом), and the habitual приїжджа́є vs single-arrival приї́хав contrast.