Verbs of Motion (Глаголы движения)

Verbs of Motion are a distinct and complex subgroup of Russian verbs, often causing significant difficulty for learners. They describe movement and have unique aspectual and directional properties.

1. Core Distinction: Unidirectional vs. Multidirectional (Bare Verbs - Imperfective Aspect):

• Unidirectional (однонаправленные): Describe motion in one specific direction, or a single, ongoing trip. These are imperfective.
  • e.g., идти (to be going, by foot, now, one way), ехать (to be going, by vehicle, now, one way), лететь (to be flying, now, one way), нести (to be carrying, now, one way).
• Multidirectional (разнонаправленные / неопределённые): Describe motion in various directions, a round trip, habitual/repeated motion, or the general ability to move. These are also imperfective.
  • e.g., ходить (to go/walk generally, habitually, back and forth), ездить (to go/travel by vehicle generally, habitually), летать (to fly generally, habitually), носить (to carry generally, habitually).

2. Prefixed Verbs of Motion:

• Adding a Prefix: When a prefix (like при-, у-, в-, вы-, пере-, до-, за-) is added to a unidirectional base verb, it creates a new Perfective (СВ) verb with a specific, modified meaning of direction or manner.
  • e.g., прийти (to arrive, foot, PF), уехать (to depart, vehicle, PF), войти (to enter, foot, PF).
• New Imperfective Counterparts: These new prefixed perfective verbs then form their own Imperfective (НСВ) counterparts. These imperfectives are often formed by modifying the multidirectional stem or using specific suffixes.
  • e.g., приходить (НСВ) / прийти (СВ) - to arrive
  • уезжать (НСВ) / уехать (СВ) - to depart
  • входить (НСВ) / войти (СВ) - to enter

3. Key Bare Verb Pairs (all Imperfective):

• идти / ходить (to go, by foot)
• ехать / ездить (to go, by vehicle)
• лететь / летать (to fly)
• плыть / плавать (to swim/sail)
• бежать / бегать (to run)
• нести / носить (to carry [by hand])
• везти / возить (to transport [by vehicle])
• вести / водить (to lead [on foot])

Key Characteristics:

• The choice between unidirectional and multidirectional is highly contextual.
• Prefixes radically change the meaning and aspect.
• There's a distinction between "on foot" movement and "by transport."

Difficulties for Foreigners:

• Mastering the subtle uni- vs. multidirectional distinction.
• Memorizing the meanings of numerous prefixes and their combinations.
• Correctly forming and using the aspectual pairs of prefixed verbs of motion.
• Knowing when a simple "идти" suffices versus a more complex prefixed verb.

Learning to use Russian verbs of motion is a big challenge for foreigners. PROMT.One Conjugator is always here to help you. With one click, you can access complete conjugation tables for any Russian verb of motion.