Learn Hardcore Ukrainian: Також мені треба вмикати й вимикати лампу.

Також means “also” or “too.” It adds the idea of “in addition.” In Ukrainian, you can place it at the beginning (Також мені треба…), before the verb (Мені також треба…), or even after треба (Мені треба також…). The emphasis shifts slightly, but all positions are acceptable.

Why is треба used here instead of a personal verb like “want” or “need”?

Треба is an impersonal modal verb meaning “it is necessary to” or “one needs to.” It always takes the dative subject (мені) and an infinitive (вмикати). There is no personal subject like “I” in треба, so мені треба literally means “to me it is necessary.”

What case is мені, and why is it used?

Мені is the dative form of я (“I”). With impersonal modal expressions like треба, the thing or person who needs to do something is put in the dative: мені треба = “I need to.”

Why are both вмикати and вимикати in the imperfective infinitive, not perfective?

Both verbs are imperfective infinitives, describing a repeated or habitual action: “to switch on” (вмикати) and “to switch off” (вимикати). If you wanted to emphasize a single completed action, you’d use the perfective forms увімкнути and вимкнути.

What’s the difference between вмикати/вимикати and включати/виключати?

Both pairs mean “to turn on/off.” Вмикати/вимикати is a bit more colloquial and often used for lights or devices. Включати/виключати is standard, used for circuits, devices, or figuratively “include/exclude.” In many contexts they’re interchangeable.

Why is the conjunction й used here instead of і?

Й is a reduced form of і used before vowels to improve flow and avoid the vowel clash. Since вимикати starts with в, you could say і вимикати, but many speakers prefer й вимикати for euphony.

What case is лампу, and how do you recognize it?

Лампу is the accusative singular of лампа (a feminine noun ending in –а). In Ukrainian, most feminine nouns replace –а with –у when they are direct objects.

Can I replace треба with требу, требує, or требувати?

No. Треба is invariable in the present tense. There is no first-person form требу or third-person требує. Требувати is a different verb meaning “to demand” or “to claim.”

Could I rephrase this sentence more personally, like “I need to…”?

Yes. You can say Мені потрібно вмикати й вимикати лампу. Потрібно is a synonym of треба and works the same way: impersonal, takes the dative (мені).