Imperfective: плати́ти — "to pay, to be paying (habitually / as a process)" Perfective: заплати́ти — "to pay (once, in full, completely)" Type: a prefix-derived aspect pair — the perfective simply adds за- to the imperfective
плати́ти / заплати́ти is the everyday verb of paying — the outgoing side of money, opposite to заробля́ти / зароби́ти "to earn." Two things make it worth a careful page. First, the consonant trap: the imperfective 1sg mutates т→ч, giving плачу́ "I pay" (not плати́ю). Second, the *government is genuinely tricky for English speakers — you pay за + accusative for the thing, and you pay the person in the dative, which is the reverse of the prepositions English uses. Stress is marked on every form below.
Present tense — плати́ти (imperfective only)
Only the imperfective плати́ти has a present tense. It is a second-conjugation -и- verb, and the 1sg carries the dental mutation т→ч: плачу́ "I pay." The other five persons keep plain т (пла́тиш, пла́тить…). Stress sits on the ending in плачу́ but retreats to the root пла́- in every other present form.
| Person | плати́ти — PRESENT | English |
|---|---|---|
| я | плачу́ | I pay / am paying |
| ти | пла́тиш | you pay (sg.) |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | пла́тить | he / she / it pays |
| ми | пла́тимо | we pay |
| ви | пла́тите | you pay (pl./formal) |
| вони́ | пла́тять | they pay |
The present means habitual or ongoing paying: Я плачу́ за сві́тло ка́ртою "I pay for electricity by card." For one finished payment you switch to the perfective заплати́ти.
Я за́вжди плачу́ за оре́нду на поча́тку мі́сяця.
I always pay the rent at the start of the month. (habitual present плачу́ with т→ч; за + accusative оре́нду.)
Хто пла́тить за вече́рю — ти чи я?
Who's paying for dinner — you or me? (3sg пла́тить, plain т, root stress.)
Past tense — плати́в / заплати́в
The past is built off each aspect's stem with the gendered -в / -ла / -ло / -ли endings. The mutation т→ч does not appear in the past — it lives only in the 1sg present. Stress stays on the root vowel -и- throughout.
| Gender / number | Perfective заплати́ти | Imperfective плати́ти |
|---|---|---|
| masculine | заплати́в | плати́в |
| feminine | заплати́ла | плати́ла |
| neuter | заплати́ло | плати́ло |
| plural | заплати́ли | плати́ли |
The perfective past is the everyday "I paid (done)." The imperfective past describes a habit or process: Ра́ніше ми плати́ли готі́вкою "We used to pay in cash."
Ми вже заплати́ли за готе́ль, лиша́ється тільки квитки́.
We've already paid for the hotel, only the tickets are left. (perfective past заплати́ли — a single completed payment.)
Він ро́ками плати́в аліме́нти, не пропусти́вши жо́дного мі́сяця.
For years he paid child support without missing a single month. (imperfective past плати́в — a repeated obligation over time.)
Future tense — perfective заплати́ти vs imperfective плати́ти
The perfective заплати́ти has no present; its conjugated forms are future in meaning. It is a second-conjugation -и- verb. The dental mutation т→ч appears here too in the 1sg — заплачу́ "I'll pay" — and only there; the other persons keep plain т (запла́тиш, запла́тить…). Stress is on the ending in заплачу́, on the root запла́- elsewhere.
| Person | Perfective future (заплати́ти) | Imperfective analytic (бу́ду…) | Imperfective synthetic (-му) |
|---|---|---|---|
| я | заплачу́ | бу́ду плати́ти | плати́тиму |
| ти | запла́тиш | бу́деш плати́ти | плати́тимеш |
| він / вона́ / воно́ | запла́тить | бу́де плати́ти | плати́тиме |
| ми | запла́тимо | бу́демо плати́ти | плати́тимемо |
| ви | запла́тите | бу́дете плати́ти | плати́тимете |
| вони́ | запла́тять | бу́дуть плати́ти | плати́тимуть |
For the 1sg the standard stress is the ending-stressed заплачу́ (it mirrors the imperfective плачу́); you will also hear a root-stressed запла́чу in everyday speech, which is a recognised colloquial variant — but заплачу́ is the form to learn.
The two imperfective futures (бу́ду плати́ти / плати́тиму) describe future paying as a habit or process — "I'll be paying / will keep paying."
Не хвилю́йся, за таксі́ заплачу́ я.
Don't worry, I'll pay for the taxi. (perfective future заплачу́ with т→ч; за + accusative таксі́.)
Якщо́ ти забу́деш гамане́ць, запла́тиш насту́пного ра́зу.
If you forget your wallet, you'll pay next time. (perfective future запла́тиш, plain т, root stress.)
Відтепе́р я бу́ду плати́ти ка́рткою, а не готі́вкою.
From now on I'll pay by card, not cash. (imperfective future as a new habit, бу́ду + infinitive.)
Imperative — заплати́ vs плати́
Both aspects form imperatives. The perfective заплати́ / заплаті́ть demands one specific payment ("pay this bill"); the imperfective плати́ / платі́ть tells someone to pay as a rule or to keep paying. For a one-off "go pay X," the perfective заплати́ is the default.
| Addressee | Perfective заплати́ти | Imperfective плати́ти |
|---|---|---|
| ти (informal) | заплати́ | плати́ |
| ви (formal / plural) | заплаті́ть | платі́ть |
| 3rd person (let…) | хай / неха́й запла́тить | хай / неха́й пла́тить |
Заплати́, будь ла́ска, за комуна́лку, поки́ не зачини́ли ка́су.
Pay the utility bill, please, before the till closes. (perfective imperative заплати́ + за + accusative.)
Participles and verbal adverbs
| Form | заплати́ти / плати́ти |
|---|---|
| passive past participle (pf.) | запла́чений "paid (for)" |
| imperfective verbal adverb | пла́тячи "(while) paying" |
| perfective verbal adverb | заплати́вши "having paid" |
The participle запла́чений is everyday — уже́ запла́чений раху́нок "an already-paid bill," усе́ запла́чено "it's all been paid" (the -но impersonal). The verbal adverbs пла́тячи / заплати́вши are (literary / written).
Key uses & case government
1. плати́ти + за + accusative — the thing paid for
The thing you pay for takes за + accusative: плати́ти за ка́ву "pay for coffee," заплати́ти за сві́тло "pay for electricity," плати́ти за навча́ння "pay for tuition." This is the single most important pattern of the verb. See prepositional government.
За цю су́кню я заплати́ла бі́льше, ніж планува́ла.
I paid more for this dress than I'd planned. (за + accusative су́кню — the thing paid for.)
2. плати́ти + dative — the recipient
The person or institution you pay goes in the dative, with no preposition: заплати́ти офіціа́нтові "pay the waiter," плати́ти ба́нку "pay the bank," заплати́ти продавце́ві "pay the seller." See dative uses.
Заплати́ ма́йстрові готі́вкою, він про́сить так.
Pay the repairman in cash, that's what he asks for. (dative recipient ма́йстрові + instrumental готі́вкою 'in cash'.)
3. The full frame — pay someone for something
Combine the two: плати́ти + [dative person] + за + [accusative thing] — заплати́ти таксисто́ві за пої́здку "pay the taxi driver for the ride." Both roles are case-marked, so word order is free.
Я заплати́в репети́торові сто гри́вень за уро́к.
I paid the tutor a hundred hryvnias for the lesson. (dative репети́торові + за + accusative уро́к + accusative amount.)
4. плати́ти vs кошту́вати — pay vs cost
Keep these apart. плати́ти is what a person does (you pay). кошту́вати is what a thing does (it costs). "How much did you pay?" = Скі́льки ти заплати́в? but "How much does it cost?" = Скі́льки це кошту́є?
Кни́га кошту́є двісті гри́вень, але́ я заплати́в сто п’ятдеся́т — була́ зни́жка.
The book costs two hundred hryvnias, but I paid a hundred and fifty — there was a discount. (кошту́вати for the thing, плати́ти for the person — both in one sentence.)
5. заплати́ти vs оплати́ти vs сплати́ти — three "pay" verbs
This is where careful Ukrainian gets subtle, and it is worth knowing because the choice depends on the object, not just the meaning. All three are perfective "pay," but they govern differently:
| Verb | Object | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| заплати́ти | за + accusative (or dative person) | pay for a thing / pay a person — the all-purpose verb |
| оплати́ти | direct accusative (no за) | pay (settle in full) a bill, an order, a service — оплати́ти раху́нок |
| сплати́ти | direct accusative | pay (off) an obligation — taxes, a fine, a debt — сплати́ти пода́тки |
The trap is that оплати́ти and сплати́ти take a bare accusative (no за), while заплати́ти needs за. So оплати́ти раху́нок "pay the bill" but заплати́ти за раху́нок — both exist, with оплати́ти being crisper. Use сплати́ти specifically for what you owe: сплати́ти пода́тки "pay taxes," сплати́ти штраф "pay a fine," сплати́ти борг "pay off a debt."
Я оплати́в замо́влення онла́йн, а за доста́вку заплати́в кур’є́рові готі́вкою.
I paid for the order online, and paid the courier in cash for delivery. (оплати́ти + bare accusative замо́влення vs заплати́ти + за + accusative.)
Не забу́дь сплати́ти пода́тки до кінця́ кві́тня.
Don't forget to pay your taxes by the end of April. (сплати́ти + bare accusative for an obligation — пода́тки.)
Common Mistakes
❌ Я плати́ю за ка́ву.
Missing consonant mutation — the imperfective 1sg of плати́ти is плачу́, with the dental т→ч change, not *плати́ю: Я плачу́ за ка́ву.
✅ Я плачу́ за ка́ву.
I pay for the coffee.
❌ Я плачу́ ка́ву.
Missing preposition — the thing paid for needs за + accusative, not a bare accusative: Я плачу́ за ка́ву. (Я плачу́ ка́ву would be ungrammatical here.)
✅ Я плачу́ за ка́ву.
I pay for the coffee.
❌ Я заплати́в за офіціа́нта.
Case confusion — за + accusative is the THING; the person you pay goes in the bare dative: Я заплати́в офіціа́нтові. (за офіціа́нта would mean 'paid in place of the waiter'.)
✅ Я заплати́в офіціа́нтові.
I paid the waiter.
❌ Скі́льки ти пла́тиш за цю кни́гу? — Вона́ пла́тить двісті гри́вень.
Wrong verb — a thing doesn't 'pay', it COSTS: Вона́ кошту́є двісті гри́вень. Use плати́ти for people, кошту́вати for prices.
✅ Вона́ кошту́є двісті гри́вень.
It costs two hundred hryvnias.
❌ За́втра я плачу́ за всі раху́нки одра́зу.
Aspect error — one completed payment in the future needs the PERFECTIVE: За́втра я заплачу́ за всі раху́нки. The present плачу́ means a habit, not a one-off.
✅ За́втра я заплачу́ за всі раху́нки одра́зу.
Tomorrow I'll pay all the bills at once.
Key Takeaways
- Prefix pair: imperfective плати́ти
- the prefix за- → perfective заплати́ти ("pay in full, once").
- Dental mutation: the 1sg has т→ч — imperfective плачу́, perfective заплачу́; all other persons keep plain т (пла́тиш, пла́тить…; запла́тиш, запла́тить…).
- Government: thing paid for = за + accusative (за ка́ву); recipient = bare dative (офіціа́нтові). Full frame: заплати́ти + dative person + за + accusative thing.
- Don't confuse with кошту́вати "to cost" — people pay (плати́ти), things cost (кошту́вати).
- Past: плати́в / плати́ла… and заплати́в / заплати́ла… — root stress, no mutation in the past.
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- Verb Reference: Коштувати (to cost)A2 — Complete conjugation-and-usage reference for кошту́вати 'to cost' — a defective, 3rd-person-dominant verb with no everyday perfective. The thing is the subject (Кни́га кошту́є…), the price goes in the accusative (…сто гри́вень), and the everyday question is Скі́льки це кошту́є? 'How much does it cost?'. Covers the present кошту́є / кошту́ють, the past кошту́вав / кошту́вало, both imperfective futures, the figurative 'to cost (someone dearly)' sense, and the contrast with плати́ти 'to pay'.
- Verb Reference: Заробляти / Заробити (to earn)B1 — Complete conjugation-and-usage reference for the aspect pair заробля́ти (imperfective) / зароби́ти (perfective) 'to earn'. The imperfective заробля́ти is a regular first-conjugation -а́ти verb (заробля́ю, заробля́єш…); the perfective зароби́ти is a second-conjugation -и- verb with the labial mutation б→бл in the 1sg зароблю́ and 3pl заро́блять. Object in the ACCUSATIVE (заробля́ти гро́ші), 'earn (up) for' with на + accusative (зароби́ти на маши́ну), and a clean contrast with плати́ти 'to pay'.
- 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).
- Verbs with Fixed PrepositionsB2 — A high-error group of Ukrainian verbs requires a specific preposition plus a fixed case that rarely maps to English: чека́ти НА + acc 'wait for', дивитися НА + acc 'look at', думати ПРО + acc 'think about', одружи́тися З + instr 'marry', готува́тися ДО + gen 'prepare for', зале́жати ВІД + gen 'depend on', вступи́ти ДО + gen 'enter (university)' — so each verb+preposition+case is a fixed chunk you must learn whole.
- Dative: Core UsesA2 — Beyond the indirect object (дати книгу братові), the dative carries Ukrainian's whole experiencer system: the person who feels, needs, owns an age, or likes something becomes a dative while the verb goes impersonal — мені холодно 'I'm cold', мені двадцять років 'I'm twenty', мені треба йти 'I need to go', мені подобається кава 'I like coffee'.
- Money, Age, and Everyday CountingA2 — The numeral-agreement rule made practical: counting money (одна́ гри́вня, дві гри́вні, п’ять гри́вень), asking and stating prices (Скі́льки ко́штує? — ко́штує п’ять гри́вень), and the dative-experiencer age construction (Мені́ два́дцять ро́ків) where 'year' is suppletive — рік (1), ро́ки (2–4), ро́ків (5+) — so 'I am five' literally says 'to-me five years' with no verb 'to be'.