Ми чекаємо сім хвилин.

A word-by-word breakdown is:

• Ми = we
• чекаємо = wait / are waiting
• сім = seven
• хвилин = minutes

So the sentence literally looks like We wait seven minutes, but in natural English it is usually We are waiting for seven minutes or, depending on context, We have been waiting for seven minutes.

Because чекаємо is the 1st person plural present tense form of чекати (to wait).

The verb pattern is:

• я чекаю = I wait / I am waiting
• ти чекаєш = you wait
• він/вона чекає = he/she waits
• ми чекаємо = we wait
• ви чекаєте = you wait
• вони чекають = they wait

So the ending -ємо tells you the subject is we.

It can mean both.

Ukrainian does not normally separate these the way English does. The present tense often covers both:

• we wait
• we are waiting

Context tells you which meaning is intended.

So Ми чекаємо сім хвилин could mean:

• We are waiting for seven minutes
• We wait for seven minutes

In real-life context, it often sounds most natural as an ongoing action: We are waiting.

You can drop ми.

Because чекаємо already shows we, the pronoun is often unnecessary.

So both are possible:

• Ми чекаємо сім хвилин.
• Чекаємо сім хвилин.

Including ми can add clarity or emphasis, a bit like We are waiting seven minutes.

Because after 5 and higher in Ukrainian, the counted noun usually goes in the genitive plural.

Compare:

• одна хвилина = one minute
• дві хвилини = two minutes
• три хвилини = three minutes
• чотири хвилини = four minutes
• п'ять хвилин = five minutes
• сім хвилин = seven minutes

So сім хвилин is the correct form.

Хвилин is genitive plural of хвилина.

This happens because of the numeral сім. With numerals 5+, Ukrainian normally uses the noun in the genitive plural.

So:

• dictionary form: хвилина
• genitive plural: хвилин

English says wait for seven minutes, but Ukrainian usually expresses duration without a preposition.

So:

• чекати сім хвилин = to wait for seven minutes

This is very normal in Ukrainian. The time expression just follows the verb directly.

Yes, it often can.

Ukrainian frequently uses the present tense where English uses have been + -ing, especially with expressions of duration.

So in context:

• Ми чекаємо сім хвилин.
• Ми вже чекаємо сім хвилин.

can mean:

• We have been waiting for seven minutes.

Adding вже (already) often makes that ongoing-duration meaning even clearer.

Yes. Ukrainian word order is more flexible than English.

The neutral order here is:

• Ми чекаємо сім хвилин.

But you might also hear:

• Сім хвилин ми чекаємо.
• Ми сім хвилин чекаємо.

These versions can shift the emphasis:

• Сім хвилин first emphasizes the duration.
• Ми first is a more neutral subject-first structure.

So the meaning stays similar, but the focus can change.

Because Ukrainian has no articles.

There is no direct equivalent of English a/an/the in normal Ukrainian grammar. Whether something is definite or indefinite is usually understood from:

• context
• word order
• extra words, if needed

So Ми чекаємо сім хвилин does not need any article-like word.

This is a very useful aspect question.

• чекаємо = we wait / we are waiting
• почекаємо = we will wait / let’s wait a bit

Why?

• чекати is imperfective: ongoing, repeated, or general action
• почекати is perfective: a completed or bounded act of waiting

In Ukrainian, a perfective verb usually does not have a true present-tense meaning. Its “present” form normally refers to the future.

So:

• Ми чекаємо сім хвилин. = We are waiting for seven minutes.
• Ми почекаємо сім хвилин. = We will wait seven minutes.

A simple English-friendly guide is:

My che-KA-ye-mo sim khvy-LYN

Approximate stress:

• Ми — one syllable
• чекаємо — stress on КА
• сім — one syllable
• хвилин — stress on ЛИН

A few pronunciation notes:

• ч sounds like ch in chair
• х sounds like a stronger, throatier h
• и is not exactly English ee or ih; it is a central vowel that English speakers usually need some practice with
• є in чекаємо sounds like ye

It can change in other cases, but here сім is the normal form.

For example, in other contexts you may see forms like:

• семи
• сімома

But in Ми чекаємо сім хвилин, the basic form сім is the one you need.

So for this sentence, you can simply learn:

• сім хвилин = seven minutes