First conjugation verbs, singular (-ать)

The Present Tense

In Russian, dictionary forms of verbs (the infinitive) usually end in -ть. The largest group of verbs ends in -ать, such as делать (to do) and знать (to know). This is known as the First Conjugation.

Russian has only one present tense. Depending on the context, a verb like делаю can mean either "I do" or "I am doing". To emphasize that an action is happening right at this moment, you can add the word сейчас (now).

Singular Endings

To conjugate a verb in the present tense, drop the -ть from the infinitive and add the ending that matches the subject:

Here is the ты form in action:

To make a verb negative, simply place не directly before it. Notice how the verb endings change when switching from я to он:

Nouns as the Subject

When the subject of the sentence is a singular noun—like your brother, a woman, or your family—treat it like он, она, or оно and use the -ет ending.

If you want to say that someone does something "a lot", use the word много. It usually goes immediately before the verb. For example, with the verb работать (to work):

Contrasting Actions

As you learn more verbs like отдыхать (to rest), you can contrast who is doing what by using the conjunction а (and/but). Pay close attention to how the ending of each verb matches its specific pronoun: