Infinitive (imperfective): люби́ти — "to love, to like, to be fond of" Perfective partner: полюби́ти — "to come to love, to take a liking to" Type: second-conjugation verb with a labial л-insertion and mobile stress
люби́ти covers a wide emotional range — from "I love you" to "I like coffee" to "I'm fond of long walks." Its conjugation hides one classic Slavic trick: because the stem ends in the labial -б-, an -л- is inserted before the ending in exactly two places, the 1sg люблю́ and the 3pl лю́блять. The four middle forms (лю́биш, лю́бить, лю́бимо, лю́бите) have no -л-. On top of that the stress is end-fixed only in the 1sg люблю́ and retracts to the лю́- stem everywhere else. Get those two patterns right and the rest is easy. Stress is marked on every form below.
Present tense — second conjugation, л-insertion in 1sg & 3pl
A second-conjugation verb: stem люб- plus the -ю / -иш / -ить / -имо / -ите / -ять endings. The 1sg люблю́ takes the end stress and an inserted -л-; the 3pl лю́блять also has the -л-, but with stem stress; the four forms in between are plain stem-stressed -б- forms.
| Person | люби́ти — PRESENT | English |
|---|---|---|
| я | люблю́ | I love / like |
| ти | лю́биш | you love (sg.) |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | лю́бить | he / she / it loves |
| ми | лю́бимо | we love |
| ви | лю́бите | you love (pl./formal) |
| вони́ | лю́блять | they love |
Я люблю́ те́бе бі́льше за все на сві́ті.
I love you more than anything in the world. (1sg люблю́ + accusative те́бе.)
Ти лю́биш ка́ву з молоко́м чи без?
Do you like coffee with milk or without? (2sg лю́биш — no -л-, stem-stressed.)
Ді́ти лю́блять моро́зиво, осо́бливо влі́тку.
Children love ice cream, especially in summer. (3pl лю́блять — -л- returns, stem stress.)
Past tense — gendered (люби́в…)
A regular gendered past in -в / -ла / -ло / -ли, with the stress on the -и́- of the stem throughout. No л-insertion and no mutation in the past.
| Gender / number | люби́ти (impf) | полюби́ти (pf) |
|---|---|---|
| masculine | люби́в | полюби́в |
| feminine | люби́ла | полюби́ла |
| neuter | люби́ло | полюби́ло |
| plural | люби́ли | полюби́ли |
The imperfective past is the ordinary "loved / used to love" (a lasting feeling); the perfective полюби́в marks the moment the feeling began — "came to love, fell for."
У ди́тинстві я люби́в лі́то й кані́кули.
As a child I loved summer and the holidays. (Imperfective lasting state — люби́в.)
Вона́ одра́зу полюби́ла це мі́сто.
She fell in love with this city straight away. (Perfective полюби́ла — the feeling beginning.)
Future tense
Perfective полюби́ти — the simple future
The perfective's present-form is its future, "I'll come to love." It keeps the same л-insertion and stress pattern as the imperfective present.
| Person | полюби́ти — FUTURE | English |
|---|---|---|
| я | полюблю́ | I'll come to love |
| ти | полю́биш | you'll come to love |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | полю́бить | he / she / it will |
| ми | полю́бимо | we'll come to love |
| ви | полю́бите | you'll come to love |
| вони́ | полю́блять | they'll come to love |
Ось поживе́ш тут рік — і полю́биш це мі́сто.
Live here for a year and you'll come to love this place. (Perfective future полю́биш.)
Imperfective люби́ти — both compound futures
The imperfective forms its future analytically (бу́ду + infinitive) or synthetically (-му). Note that "will love" in the lasting sense is more often rendered by the imperfective, while the onset of love uses perfective полюби́ти.
| Person | Analytic (бу́ду + inf.) | Synthetic (-му) |
|---|---|---|
| я | бу́ду люби́ти | люби́тиму |
| ти | бу́деш люби́ти | люби́тимеш |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | бу́де люби́ти | люби́тиме |
| ми | бу́демо люби́ти | люби́тимемо |
| ви | бу́дете люби́ти | люби́тимете |
| вони́ | бу́дуть люби́ти | люби́тимуть |
Я люби́тиму тебе́ за́вжди.
I'll always love you. (Synthetic imperfective future люби́тиму — a lasting feeling.)
Imperative
The imperative is built on the люб- stem (no -л-). Beyond its literal use, Люби́! appears in mottos and song.
| Addressee | люби́ти (impf) | полюби́ти (pf) |
|---|---|---|
| ти (informal) | люби́ | полюби́ |
| ви (formal / plural) | любі́ть | полюбі́ть |
| 3rd person (let…) | хай / неха́й лю́бить | хай / неха́й полю́бить |
Люби́ себе́ таки́м, яки́й ти є.
Love yourself for who you are. (Imperfective imperative люби́ + accusative себе́.)
Participles and verbal adverbs
| Form | люби́ти |
|---|---|
| present active participle | лю́блячий "loving / fond" (rare) |
| past passive participle | улю́блений "beloved, favourite" |
| imperfective verbal adverb | лю́блячи "(while) loving" |
By far the most useful of these is the adjective улю́блений "favourite / beloved" — мій улю́блений фільм "my favourite film." The verbal adverb and active participle are (literary / written).
Key uses & case government
1. Accusative object — люблю́ + thing or person
люби́ти governs a plain accusative with no preposition, for both things and people: люблю́ ка́ву, му́зику, мо́ре; люблю́ тебе́, ма́му, цьо́го акто́ра. With animate objects the accusative copies the genitive (люблю́ свого́ бра́та), the standard animacy rule.
Він лю́бить кла́сичну му́зику й старі́ фі́льми.
He loves classical music and old films. (Accusative objects му́зику, фі́льми.)
2. люби́ти + infinitive — "love / like doing"
To say you like doing something, follow люби́ти with an imperfective infinitive (you enjoy the activity, not a single act): люблю́ чита́ти, гуля́ти, готува́ти. This is the everyday way to express a hobby or a preference.
Я люблю́ гуля́ти па́рком уве́чері.
I like walking in the park in the evening. (люби́ти + imperfective infinitive гуля́ти.)
Ми лю́бимо подорожува́ти, осо́бливо взи́мку.
We love travelling, especially in winter. (лю́бимо + infinitive подорожува́ти.)
3. люби́ти vs подо́батися — strong "love" vs milder "like"
For a milder, more momentary "I like it," Ukrainian often prefers подо́батися, an experiencer verb where the liker goes in the dative and the liked thing is the subject: Мені́ подо́бається це мі́сто "I like this place." The rule of thumb: люби́ти = a lasting fondness or love (люблю́ це мі́сто = it's dear to me); подо́батися = a reaction, often to something new (мені́ подо́бається це мі́сто = I find it pleasant). The full contrast is on the подо́батися page.
Мені́ ду́же подо́бається твоя́ нова́ зачі́ска!
I really like your new haircut! (Reaction to something new — подо́батися + dative мені́, not люби́ти.)
Common Mistakes
❌ Я любю́ ка́ву.
Missing л-insertion — after the labial -б- the 1sg inserts -л-: Я люблю́ ка́ву.
✅ Я люблю́ ка́ву.
I like coffee.
❌ Вони́ лю́бять моро́зиво.
The 3pl also needs the -л-: лю́блять, not 'лю́бять': Вони́ лю́блять моро́зиво.
✅ Вони́ лю́блять моро́зиво.
They love ice cream.
❌ Я люблю́ цю пі́сню — мені́ люблю́ її́.
Construction error — for a reaction use подо́батися with the dative: …мені́ подо́бається ця пі́сня. (люби́ти does NOT take a dative experiencer.)
✅ Мені́ подо́бається ця пі́сня.
I like this song.
❌ Я люблю́ прочита́ти перед сном.
Aspect error — with люби́ти 'enjoy doing', use the IMPERFECTIVE infinitive (the habitual activity): Я люблю́ чита́ти перед сном.
✅ Я люблю́ чита́ти перед сном.
I like reading before bed.
❌ Вона́ люби́в свою́ робо́ту.
Agreement error — the past agrees with gender; a female subject takes люби́ла: Вона́ люби́ла свою́ робо́ту.
✅ Вона́ люби́ла свою́ робо́ту.
She loved her job.
Key Takeaways
- л-insertion at the edges: 1sg люблю́ and 3pl лю́блять have an inserted -л-; the middle four (лю́биш, лю́бить, лю́бимо, лю́бите) do not.
- Stress: end-stressed only in 1sg люблю́, then stem-stressed (лю́-) elsewhere.
- Past: люби́в / люби́ла / люби́ло / люби́ли — gendered, stress on -и́-.
- Future: perfective полюблю́ "come to love"; imperfective бу́ду люби́ти / люби́тиму for a lasting feeling.
- Government: plain accusative (люблю́ ка́ву, люблю́ тебе́) or
- imperfective infinitive
- люби́ти vs подо́батися: люби́ти = lasting love/fondness (accusative); подо́батися = a milder reaction (dative experiencer, мені́ подо́бається).
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- Present Tense: Second ConjugationA1 — The second conjugation (друга дієвідміна) takes the present endings -у/-ю, -иш/-їш, -ить/-їть, -имо/-їмо, -ите/-їте, -ать/-ять, built on the theme vowel -и-/-ї- with a 3pl in -ать/-ять. Drill three models: regular говори́ти (говорю́, гово́риш, гово́рить… гово́рять), labial+л in the 1sg люби́ти (люблю́, лю́биш… лю́блять), and dental mutation in the 1sg ходи́ти (ходжу́, хо́диш… хо́дять) and ба́чити (ба́чу, ба́чиш… ба́чать — -ать, not -ять, after the hushing ч). The key insight: the mutation is confined to the я-form.
- Present-Stem Consonant ChangesA2 — When you form the present stem, a stem-final consonant often mutates: д→дж, т→ч, з→ж, с→ш, ст→щ, and any labial (б п в м ф) inserts an epenthetic -л-. In the second conjugation this happens only in the 1sg (ходи́ти→ходжу́, but хо́диш); in the first conjugation it runs through the whole present (писа́ти→пишу́, пи́шеш…). The mutations are regular, so you can derive the tricky я-form instead of memorising it.
- Accusative: Uses Beyond the Direct ObjectB1 — The accusative does more than mark the object — with в/у, на, за, під, через it marks motion TOWARD a target (іду в школу), it expresses bare-preposition duration (чекав годину 'waited an hour'), and it stands in a pivotal contrast with the locative: the same prepositions в/у and на take the accusative for direction (куди? в школу) but the locative for static location (де? в школі).
- Подобатися (to be pleasing / to like)A2 — Complete conjugation-and-usage reference for подо́батися 'to be pleasing / to like' — the model EXPERIENCER-DATIVE verb where the liker goes in the dative (Мені́ подо́бається…) and the thing liked is the nominative subject that controls agreement (подо́бається ця кни́га, подо́баються ці кни́ги). Covers the imperfective present, the gendered past, both imperfective futures, the imperative, the perfective сподо́батися, and the contrast with люби́ти (accusative).
- Verb Reference: Любити / Подобатися / Кохати (to like, to love)A2 — A combined conjugation-and-usage reference for the three Ukrainian verbs of liking and loving — люби́ти (general love/like, + accusative, with the 1sg люблю́), коха́ти (romantic love only, + accusative), and подо́батися (the 'appeal' verb: мені́ подо́бається + dative experiencer + nominative subject). One full table per verb, the case-government contrasts, and the кохати-vs-любити distinction native speakers actually observe.
- Verbal Aspect: The Big PictureA2 — Aspect is the central, pervasive feature of the Ukrainian verb: nearly every verb belongs to an aspect PAIR — imperfective (недоко́наний вид), which views an action as a process, ongoing, repeated, or general (чита́ти), and perfective (доко́наний вид), which views it as a single completed whole with a result or boundary (прочита́ти). The consequences are sharp: imperfectives have a present, a past, and BOTH futures (бу́ду чита́ти / чита́тиму); perfectives have NO present — their present-shaped form is future (прочита́ю = 'I will read it through') — only a past (прочита́в) and a simple future (прочита́ю). Aspect is chosen for EVERY verb in EVERY clause; it is not optional, and it has no English equivalent.