Infinitive (imperfective): лежа́ти — "to lie, to be lying, to be in a horizontal position" Delimitative perfective: полежа́ти — "to lie (for a while)" Type: a second-conjugation verb with end-stress in the present (лежу́, лежи́ш)
лежа́ти is the verb for the state of lying down — a body stretched out on a sofa, a book resting flat on a table, snow lying on the ground. It is one of three Ukrainian "stance" verbs that English collapses into the bland "be": стоя́ти "be standing," сиді́ти "be sitting," and лежа́ти "be lying." Where English just says the book is on the table, Ukrainian almost always picks the posture: кни́га лежи́ть на столі́ — the book lies there. The key thing to keep straight is that лежа́ти is a state, not a movement: it is the result of ляга́ти / лягти́ "to lie down," exactly as сиді́ти is the result of сіда́ти "to sit down." Stress is marked on every form below.
Present tense — end-stressed лежу́ / лежи́ш…
лежа́ти is a second-conjugation verb (the -и-/-а- type), and its stress sits on the ending throughout the present: лежу́, лежи́ш, лежи́ть… The only spot that looks different is the 3rd person plural лежа́ть, where the ending is -а́ть (not -я́ть) because ж is a hard hushing consonant.
| Person | лежа́ти — PRESENT | English |
|---|---|---|
| я | лежу́ | I lie / am lying |
| ти | лежи́ш | you lie (sg.) |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | лежи́ть | he / she / it lies |
| ми | лежимо́ | we lie |
| ви | лежите́ | you lie (pl./formal) |
| вони́ | лежа́ть | they lie |
лежа́ти describes an ongoing state — what is true right now, with no implied beginning or end.
Я лежу́ на дива́ні й нічо́го не хо́чу роби́ти.
I'm lying on the sofa and don't want to do anything. (1sg лежу́ — end-stressed, a current state.)
Твій гамане́ць лежи́ть на по́лиці в коридо́рі.
Your wallet is (lying) on the shelf in the hallway. (3sg лежи́ть — Ukrainian picks the posture where English says 'is'.)
Чому́ ви лежите́ на холо́дній підло́зі? Заме́рзнете!
Why are you lying on the cold floor? You'll catch cold! (2pl лежите́.)
Past tense — лежа́в / лежа́ла / лежа́ло / лежа́ли
The past is fully regular off the лежа-stem and stays stem-stressed on -жа́- in every form: лежа́в, лежа́ла, лежа́ло, лежа́ли. The delimitative perfective полежа́ти adds the prefix по- and keeps the same stress.
| Gender / number | лежа́ти (impf) | полежа́ти (pf, delimitative) |
|---|---|---|
| masculine | лежа́в | полежа́в |
| feminine | лежа́ла | полежа́ла |
| neuter | лежа́ло | полежа́ло |
| plural | лежа́ли | полежа́ли |
Because лежа́ти names a state, its natural past is the imperfective лежа́в "was lying / lay (for some time)." A duration phrase is its home: Він лежа́в годи́ну "He lay there for an hour."
Уве́сь день я лежа́в із температу́рою і ди́вився старі́ фі́льми.
All day I lay in bed with a fever watching old films. (Imperfective лежа́в — a lasting state across the day.)
Лист лежа́в у шухля́ді кі́лька ро́ків, по́ки ми його́ не знайшли́.
The letter lay in the drawer for several years until we found it. (Imperfective лежа́в — an enduring state.)
The delimitative perfective полежа́ти — "to lie for a while"
лежа́ти has no ordinary aspect partner that means "finish lying" — a state can't be "completed." Instead it forms a delimitative perfective with по-: полежа́ти "to lie down for a bounded stretch of time." This по- doesn't change the meaning of the verb; it just packages the state into a measured chunk, the way поспа́ти means "sleep a while" or посиді́ти "sit a while." It is very common in everyday speech.
Я тро́хи полежу́ й ві́зьмуся за робо́ту.
I'll lie down for a bit and then get to work. (Delimitative perfective полежу́ — a short, bounded rest.)
Future tense
Imperfective лежа́ти — both compound futures
Because лежа́ти is imperfective, its main future is the compound one, made analytically (бу́ду + infinitive) or synthetically (the -му form). You use it for a state that will hold across future time — I'll be lying on the beach all week.
| Person | Analytic (бу́ду + inf.) | Synthetic (-му) |
|---|---|---|
| я | бу́ду лежа́ти | лежа́тиму |
| ти | бу́деш лежа́ти | лежа́тимеш |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | бу́де лежа́ти | лежа́тиме |
| ми | бу́демо лежа́ти | лежа́тимемо |
| ви | бу́дете лежа́ти | лежа́тимете |
| вони́ | бу́дуть лежа́ти | лежа́тимуть |
На вихідни́х я просто лежа́тиму на дива́ні з кни́жкою.
At the weekend I'll just be lying on the sofa with a book. (Imperfective future лежа́тиму — a state across the weekend.)
Delimitative полежа́ти — the simple (present-form) future
The delimitative perfective uses its present-form as its future: полежу́ "I'll lie down for a bit," end-stressed like the imperfective present.
| Person | полежа́ти — FUTURE | English |
|---|---|---|
| я | полежу́ | I'll lie down (a while) |
| ти | полежи́ш | you'll lie down |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | полежи́ть | he / she / it will lie down |
| ми | полежимо́ | we'll lie down |
| ви | полежите́ | you'll lie down |
| вони́ | полежа́ть | they'll lie down |
Imperative
The imperative is end-stressed: лежи́ (2sg), лежі́ть (2pl/formal). You say it to someone who should stay put — a patient, a resting child, a dog.
| Addressee | лежа́ти (impf) | полежа́ти (pf) |
|---|---|---|
| ти (informal) | лежи́ | полежи́ |
| ви (formal / plural) | лежі́ть | полежі́ть |
| 3rd person (let…) | хай / неха́й лежи́ть | хай / неха́й полежи́ть |
Лежи́ й не вставай, лі́кар сказа́в дотри́муватися постільного режи́му.
Lie still and don't get up — the doctor said to keep to bed rest. (Imperfective imperative лежи́ — stay in the state.)
Participles and verbal adverbs
| Form | лежа́ти |
|---|---|
| active present participle | лежа́чий "lying, recumbent" |
| imperfective verbal adverb | ле́жачи "(while) lying" |
The participle лежа́чий lives in everyday phrases: лежа́чий камі́нь "a stone that lies (and gathers no moss)," лежа́чий поліце́йський "a speed bump" (literally "a lying policeman"). The verbal adverb ле́жачи "while lying" appears in advice like чита́ти ле́жачи шкідли́во для оче́й "reading while lying down is bad for the eyes."
Government
1. Location with на / в / під + the LOCATIVE
This is the heart of the verb. Because лежа́ти is a state, not a motion, the place where something lies takes the locative case after на, в, під — never the accusative of direction. лежа́ти на столі́ "lie on the table" (locative столі́), not на стіл. The contrast is sharp: ляга́ти / лягти́ "lie down" is a movement and takes на + accusative (лягти́ на дива́н), but лежа́ти sits still and takes на + locative (лежа́ти на дива́ні). See motion vs location and the locative uses.
Окуля́ри лежа́ть на ту́мбочці бі́ля лі́жка.
The glasses are (lying) on the bedside table by the bed. (Location → на + locative ту́мбочці.)
Сніг ще лежи́ть у те́ні під парка́ном.
Snow is still lying in the shade under the fence. (Locative те́ні; lying snow that hasn't melted.)
2. лежа́ти vs ляга́ти / лягти́ — state vs action
The classic pairing to keep apart. лежа́ти = the state of being horizontal (no movement); ляга́ти / лягти́ = the act of getting into that position. A duration phrase signals the state (лежа́в годи́ну "lay for an hour"); a single moment signals the action (ліг "lay down"). The same state-vs-action split runs through сиді́ти / сіда́ти and стоя́ти / става́ти.
Він ліг на дива́н і пролежа́в там до ве́чора.
He lay down on the sofa and lay there until evening. (ліг = the action of lying down; пролежа́в = the lasting state.)
3. The stance trio стоя́ти / сиді́ти / лежа́ти
For inanimate objects, Ukrainian assigns a posture by shape and how the thing rests. Roughly: tall, upright things стоя́ть (a bottle, a vase, a lamp); flat or elongated things resting on a surface лежа́ть (a book, a phone, a knife, a banknote); and things on a seat or perched сидя́ть less often for objects. When in doubt for a flat object on a surface, лежа́ти is the safe default.
На столі́ стої́ть ва́за, а по́руч лежи́ть розгорну́та газе́та.
On the table stands a vase, and next to it lies an open newspaper. (стої́ть for the upright vase, лежи́ть for the flat newspaper.)
Common Mistakes
❌ Кни́га лежи́ть на стіл.
Case error — лежа́ти is a STATE, so the place is locative: …на столі́ (locative), not на стіл (accusative of direction).
✅ Кни́га лежи́ть на столі́.
The book is (lying) on the table.
❌ За́раз я ляга́ю на дива́ні й чита́ю.
State/action mix-up — for the current state 'I'm lying on the sofa' use лежа́ти, not the action ляга́ти: За́раз я лежу́ на дива́ні й чита́ю.
✅ За́раз я лежу́ на дива́ні й чита́ю.
Right now I'm lying on the sofa reading.
❌ Я ле́жу на пля́жі весь день.
Stress error — the present of лежа́ти is END-stressed: лежу́, not *ле́жу.
✅ Я лежу́ на пля́жі весь день.
I lie on the beach all day.
❌ Окуля́ри стоя́ть на столі́.
Wrong stance verb — flat glasses lying on a surface take лежа́ти, not стоя́ти (which is for upright things): Окуля́ри лежа́ть на столі́.
✅ Окуля́ри лежа́ть на столі́.
The glasses are (lying) on the table.
❌ Лежи́ся й відпочинь.
Don't add -ся — лежа́ти is not reflexive; the reflexive verb 'lie down oneself' is the separate ляга́ти / лягти́: Лежи́ й відпочинь.
✅ Лежи́ й відпочинь.
Lie still and rest.
Key Takeaways
- лежа́ти = the STATE of lying (horizontal, at rest); the matching action verb is ляга́ти / лягти́ "lie down."
- Present (END-stressed): лежу́ / лежи́ш / лежи́ть / лежимо́ / лежите́ / лежа́ть.
- Past: лежа́в / лежа́ла / лежа́ло / лежа́ли — stem-stressed throughout.
- Government: location takes на / в / під + the LOCATIVE (лежа́ти на столі́), never the accusative — that's reserved for the motion verb лягти́.
- The bounded perfective is the delimitative полежа́ти "lie for a while" (полежу́); лежа́ти has no "completion" partner because a state can't be completed.
- Part of the stance trio стоя́ти / сиді́ти / лежа́ти — Ukrainian names the posture where English just says "is."
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- Лягати / Лягти (to lie down)B1 — Complete conjugation-and-usage reference for ляга́ти / лягти́ 'to lie down' — the verb of taking up a horizontal position. Covers the imperfective present ляга́ю / ляга́єш / ляга́є / ляга́ємо / ляга́єте / ляга́ють, the irregular perfective future ля́жу / ля́жеш / ля́же / ля́жемо / ля́жете / ля́жуть (г→ж), the bare-consonant past ліг / лягла́ / лягло́ / лягли́, both imperfective futures, the contrast with лежа́ти 'be lying', the idiom лягти́ спа́ти 'go to bed', and the imperatives Ляга́й! and Ляж!
- Сидіти (to sit / be sitting)A2 — Complete conjugation-and-usage reference for сиді́ти 'to sit, to be sitting' — a second-conjugation STATE verb with the д→дж mutation in the 1sg сиджу́ (then сиди́ш / сиди́ть / сиди́мо / сидите́ / сидя́ть). Covers the gendered past сиді́в / сиді́ла, both imperfective futures, the imperative сиди́ / сиді́ть, the all-important contrast with the change-of-state pair сіда́ти / сі́сти 'to sit DOWN', the locative government (сиді́ти на сті́льці, в кімна́ті), and the stance trio сиді́ти / стоя́ти / лежа́ти.
- Стояти (to stand)A2 — Complete conjugation-and-usage reference for стоя́ти 'to stand, to be standing' — a second-conjugation STATE verb whose stem ends in a vowel, so the endings take -ї- after it (стою́ / стої́ш / стої́ть / стоїмо́ / стоїте́ / стоя́ть). Covers the gendered past стоя́в / стоя́ла, both imperfective futures, the imperative стій / сті́йте, the all-important contrast with the change-of-state pair встава́ти / вста́ти 'to get up' and става́ти / ста́ти 'to become / stop', the locative government (стоя́ти на зупи́нці), and the stance trio стоя́ти / сиді́ти / лежа́ти — including the fact that inanimate things 'stand': Маши́на стої́ть бі́ля до́му.
- 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.
- Imperfective vs Perfective: The Master DecisionB1 — A decision-tree for the single hardest choice in Ukrainian: which aspect. Order the diagnostic questions and most decisions are made for you before you ever weigh 'process vs result' — present/ongoing, repeated/habitual, duration, and phase verbs FORCE the imperfective; a single completed result or one event in a sequence forces the perfective. Worked mini-cases, minimal pairs, and the top-five aspect traps.
- Locative: Uses (Location, Time, Topic)A2 — What the locative does — static location with у/в and на (у шко́лі, на столі́, у Ки́єві), the crucial case-not-preposition contrast with the accusative (я в шко́лі 'at school' vs іду́ в шко́лу 'to school'), calendar time with у/в (у сі́чні, у 1991 ро́ці), clock time with о + locative (о тре́тій годи́ні), 'around/along' with по (по мі́сту), and 'at/with' with при.