Infinitives: малюва́ти (imperfective) / намалюва́ти (perfective) — "to draw, to paint (a picture)" Type: a regular first-conjugation -юва- verb; the perfective is formed by adding the prefix на- (на + малюва́ти)
малюва́ти covers both "draw" (with a pencil or pen) and "paint" (with a brush) — Ukrainian does not split them the way English does; what matters is that you are creating an image. Its real teaching value, though, is the conjugation class. малюва́ти belongs to the huge -ува-/-юва- family, the same productive type as працюва́ти "to work" and купува́ти "to buy." In every one of these verbs the infinitive's -юва- collapses to -ю- in the present (малю́-ва-ти → малю́-ю), and the stress lands on that -ю́-. Learn the pattern here and you can conjugate hundreds of verbs. The perfective adds на- for a single completed picture, and the related noun is малю́нок "a drawing." The object you draw stands in the accusative. Stress is marked on every form below.
Present tense — imperfective малюва́ти only
Only the imperfective has a present. The -юва- of the infinitive surfaces as -ю- in the personal forms (малю́-ю, малю́-єш…), and the whole paradigm is stressed on that -ю́-.
| Person | малюва́ти — PRESENT | English |
|---|---|---|
| я | малю́ю | I draw / am drawing |
| ти | малю́єш | you draw (sg.) |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | малю́є | he / she / it draws |
| ми | малю́ємо | we draw |
| ви | малю́єте | you draw (pl./formal) |
| вони́ | малю́ють | they draw |
Моя́ дочка́ ці́лими дня́ми малю́є коне́й у блокно́ті.
My daughter draws horses in her notebook for days on end. (Habitual present малю́є + accusative коне́й.)
Що ти там малю́єш? Пока́жеш, коли́ закі́нчиш?
What are you drawing there? Will you show me when you finish? (малю́єш — an action in progress.)
Ми малю́ємо плака́ти до за́втрашнього свя́та.
We're painting posters for tomorrow's celebration. (малю́ємо + accusative плака́ти.)
Past tense — gendered малюва́в / намалюва́в…
Both aspects build a regular gendered past in -в / -ла / -ло / -ли. Note that the stress shifts back onto the stem in the past: present малю́ю but past малюва́в — the -ва́- is stressed throughout the past paradigm.
| Gender / number | малюва́ти (impf) | намалюва́ти (pf) |
|---|---|---|
| masculine | малюва́в | намалюва́в |
| feminine | малюва́ла | намалюва́ла |
| neuter | малюва́ло | намалюва́ло |
| plural | малюва́ли | намалюва́ли |
The aspect choice matters. The imperfective малюва́в / малюва́ла describes drawing as a process or a habit ("he was drawing; he used to draw"); the perfective намалюва́в / намалюва́ла reports one finished result — the picture exists now. Він малюва́в годи́ну "he was drawing for an hour" (process), but він намалюва́в портре́т "he drew a portrait" (a completed picture).
Він до́вго малюва́в цей пейза́ж, але́ так і не закі́нчив.
He worked on this landscape for a long time but never finished it. (Imperfective малюва́в = the process, no result.)
Вона́ намалюва́ла мені́ ка́рту, як дої́хати до да́чі.
She drew me a map of how to get to the cottage. (Perfective намалюва́ла = one finished drawing — note feminine and stem stress -ва́-.)
У шко́лі ми ча́сто малюва́ли аква́реллю.
At school we often painted in watercolours. (Imperfective малюва́ли — a repeated past activity.)
Future tense
The two aspects build the future in completely different ways.
Perfective намалюва́ти — the simple (synthetic) future
The perfective has no present; its present-looking forms ARE its future. It is just малю́ю with the prefix на-, stressed on -лю́-. It means "will draw (and finish) one picture."
| Person | намалюва́ти — FUTURE | English |
|---|---|---|
| я | намалю́ю | I'll draw |
| ти | намалю́єш | you'll draw (sg.) |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | намалю́є | he / she / it will draw |
| ми | намалю́ємо | we'll draw |
| ви | намалю́єте | you'll draw (pl./formal) |
| вони́ | намалю́ють | they'll draw |
Я намалю́ю тобі́ листі́вку на день наро́дження.
I'll draw you a birthday card. (Perfective simple future намалю́ю — one finished card; dative тобі́ for the recipient.)
Imperfective малюва́ти — both compound futures
The imperfective forms its future two ways, identical in meaning: the analytic future (бу́ду + infinitive) and the synthetic -му future. Both describe drawing as an ongoing future activity.
| Person | Analytic (бу́ду + inf.) | Synthetic (-му) |
|---|---|---|
| я | бу́ду малюва́ти | малюва́тиму |
| ти | бу́деш малюва́ти | малюва́тимеш |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | бу́де малюва́ти | малюва́тиме |
| ми | бу́демо малюва́ти | малюва́тимемо |
| ви | бу́дете малюва́ти | малюва́тимете |
| вони́ | бу́дуть малюва́ти | малюва́тимуть |
На вихідни́х я бу́ду малюва́ти — давно́ не бра́ла па́літру в ру́ки.
This weekend I'm going to paint — I haven't picked up a palette in ages. (Imperfective future — an ongoing planned activity.)
Imperative
The imperfective малю́й / малю́йте is the gentle "draw, go on drawing"; the perfective намалю́й / намалю́йте requests one finished picture. Stress sits on -лю́-.
| Addressee | малюва́ти (impf) | намалюва́ти (pf) |
|---|---|---|
| ти (informal) | малю́й | намалю́й |
| ви (formal / plural) | малю́йте | намалю́йте |
| 3rd person (let…) | хай / неха́й малю́є | хай / неха́й намалю́є |
Намалю́й мені́ соба́чку, як мину́лого ра́зу!
Draw me a little dog, like last time! (Perfective imperative намалю́й — a single requested picture.)
Participles and verbal adverbs
| Form | малюва́ти / намалюва́ти |
|---|---|
| past passive participle (pf) | намальо́ваний "drawn, painted" |
| imperfective verbal adverb | малю́ючи "(while) drawing" |
| perfective verbal adverb | намалюва́вши "having drawn" |
The past passive participle намальо́ваний (note the -ьо- spelling) is everyday — намальо́вана карти́на "a painted picture." The verbal adverbs are (literary / written).
Key uses & case government
1. The object — accusative
What you draw or paint stands in the accusative, the case of the direct object: малюва́ти карти́ну "paint a picture," портре́т "a portrait," дім "a house," квіти "flowers." See accusative uses.
Худо́жник малю́є портре́т кліє́нтки про́сто на майда́ні.
The artist is painting the client's portrait right there on the square. (Accusative object портре́т.)
2. The instrument — instrumental case
The tool or medium you draw with goes in the instrumental (no preposition): малюва́ти олівце́м "draw with a pencil," фа́рбами "with paints," аква́реллю "in watercolour," ву́гіллям "in charcoal." This is the standard "by means of" instrumental.
Ді́ти малю́ють кре́йдою на асфа́льті біля буди́нку.
The children are drawing on the asphalt with chalk near the building. (Instrumental кре́йдою for the instrument.)
3. The -ова-/-юва- class — малюва́ти, працюва́ти, купува́ти
малюва́ти is your model for the whole -ува-/-юва- conjugation type. Every verb in this class drops -ва- and conjugates the present on the bare -у-/-ю- stem: малюва́ти → малю́ю, працюва́ти → працю́ю, купува́ти → купу́ю, дякувати → дя́кую. The perfective is usually built with a prefix — here на- — which you can read more about under forming aspect pairs with prefixes. Master one and you have the lot.
Я ціли́й день працю́ю, а ввечері малю́ю для душі́.
I work all day and in the evening I draw for pleasure. (Two -юва- verbs side by side: працю́ю and малю́ю — same conjugation.)
4. Figurative малюва́ти — to picture, to paint a scene in words
малюва́ти reaches well beyond paper. The reflexive малюва́тися means "to loom up / take shape (in the imagination)," and the active verb is common in two figurative idioms a B-level speaker should recognise. Малюва́ти (собі́) в уя́ві is "to picture (to oneself), to imagine" — literally "to draw in one's imagination": я вже малю́ю собі́ цю по́дорож "I'm already picturing this trip." And малюва́ти словами is "to paint with words," said of vivid description. The perfective намалюва́ти carries the same metaphors: він намалюва́в таку́ карти́ну майбу́тнього, що всі повірили "he painted such a picture of the future that everyone believed it." These figurative uses keep the accusative object (карти́ну, майбу́тнє) and so behave exactly like the literal verb.
Слу́хаючи її́ розпо́відь, я малюва́в собі́ ці го́ри так я́сно, ніби вже там був.
Listening to her story, I pictured those mountains so vividly, as if I'd already been there. (Figurative малюва́в собі́ — 'painted in my mind'; accusative го́ри.)
Полі́тики лю́блять малюва́ти ра́дісні карти́ни, які́ ма́ло пов’я́зані з реа́льністю.
Politicians love to paint rosy pictures that have little to do with reality. (Figurative малюва́ти карти́ни — accusative.)
Common Mistakes
❌ Я малюваю кота́.
Class error — drop the -ва- of -юва- in the present: it's малю́ю, not *малюваю: Я малю́ю кота́.
✅ Я малю́ю кота́.
I'm drawing a cat.
❌ За́втра я бу́ду намалюва́ти карти́ну.
Aspect/future error — perfective намалюва́ти already IS the future; never after бу́ду: За́втра я намалю́ю карти́ну.
✅ За́втра я намалю́ю карти́ну.
Tomorrow I'll draw the picture — perfective simple future намалю́ю.
❌ Вона́ малю́є з олівце́м.
Government error — the instrument takes the bare instrumental, no 'з': Вона́ малю́є олівце́м.
✅ Вона́ малю́є олівце́м.
She's drawing with a pencil — instrumental олівце́м.
❌ Він малю́в цей пейза́ж усе́ лі́то.
Stress/form error — the past keeps the -ва́- of the stem: малюва́в, not *малю́в: Він малюва́в цей пейза́ж усе́ лі́то.
✅ Він малюва́в цей пейза́ж усе́ лі́то.
He was painting this landscape all summer.
❌ Вона́ намалюва́в краєви́д.
Agreement error — a female subject takes the feminine намалюва́ла: Вона́ намалюва́ла краєви́д.
✅ Вона́ намалюва́ла краєви́д.
She drew a scene — feminine намалюва́ла.
Key Takeaways
- Prefix pair: imperfective малюва́ти (present: малю́ю, малю́єш, малю́є, малю́ємо, малю́єте, малю́ють) vs perfective намалюва́ти (future: намалю́ю, намалю́єш…) — just add на-.
- The -юва- → -ю- rule: drop -ва-, conjugate малю́- (stress -ю́-) — the same pattern as працюва́ти → працю́ю, купува́ти → купу́ю.
- Past: stress shifts to the stem — малюва́в / малюва́ла / малюва́ло / малюва́ли; perfective намалюва́в / намалюва́ла.
- Government: the object is accusative (малюва́ти карти́ну); the instrument is instrumental with no preposition (олівце́м, фа́рбами).
- Family: the noun малю́нок "a drawing," the participle намальо́ваний "drawn/painted."
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- Працювати (to work)A1 — Complete conjugation-and-usage reference for працюва́ти 'to work' — the model verb of the huge, productive -юва-/-ува- class. The -юва- collapses to -ю- in the present (працю́ю, працю́єш, працю́є…), the past is regular працюва́в / працюва́ла, and the verb governs над + instrumental ('work on a problem') and на + locative ('work at a place'). Covers all three futures, the imperative, and the perfective попрацюва́ти.
- Купувати / Купити (to buy)A2 — Complete conjugation-and-usage reference for the aspect pair купува́ти (imperfective) / купи́ти (perfective) 'to buy'. The imperfective купува́ти is a textbook -ува-/-у- verb (купу́ю, купу́єш, купу́є…); the perfective купи́ти is a second-conjugation -и- verb with the labial mutation п→пл in the 1sg куплю́ and 3pl ку́плять (but plain ку́пиш, ку́пить). Object in the ACCUSATIVE (купи́ти хліб), recipient in the DATIVE (купи́ти пода́рунок ма́мі), and the GENITIVE PARTITIVE for 'some' (купи́ти цу́кру).
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