Russian Verbs of Motion: Expressing Direction and Means of Transport

Russian verbs of motion describe movement from one location to another, similar to English words like “go,” “walk,” and “run.” However, unlike English, these Russian verbs also incorporate the direction of movement, the manner of movement, and their grammatical structure.

Discover all the Russian verbs of motion and their various forms, and learn how to use them effectively to describe your destination and your method of travel.

The 14 Russian Verbs of Motion

There are 14 primary Russian verbs of motion, each existing in two forms. We will explore these forms in greater detail shortly, but the essential distinction is:

• The unidirectional form describes motion that occurs a single time, movement in one specific direction, or movement taking place at the present moment.
• The multidirectional form is used for repeated or habitual motion, movement in various directions, and movement as a general concept.

It is worth noting that in many contexts, both a unidirectional and a multidirectional verb can be used without changing the core meaning.

Later in this article, we will delve into the specifics of how to use each verb type and their forms. First, however, it is helpful to become acquainted with the verbs themselves.

Here is a summary of all the Russian verbs of motion:

Unidirectional and Multidirectional Verbs

Direction is a crucial factor when choosing the correct verb form. Every Russian verb of motion has both a unidirectional and a multidirectional form.

Unidirectional Verbs

Unidirectional verbs are employed for actions that:

• happen on a single occasion
• depict movement in a single direction
• refer to movement occurring right now

Here are some example sentences using unidirectional verbs:

Unidirectional verbs also appear in figurative or idiomatic expressions:

Because unidirectional verbs can indicate a current action, сейчас (now) is frequently used to emphasize that detail.

Multidirectional Verbs

In contrast, multidirectional verbs describe:

• actions that are repeated or habitual
• movement in several directions
• movement as a general activity (including a person's capacity to move)

Here are some sample sentences featuring multidirectional verbs:

Adverbs are often used with multidirectional verbs to indicate frequency or repetition, such as:

How to Use Russian Verbs of Motion

When beginning to learn, a structured approach to using verbs of motion can be very helpful. This makes it easier to remember and apply the rules mentioned earlier.

Here is a basic formula you can follow:

• Frequency word/phrase to indicate whether the action is uni- or multi-directional

• Subject + verb

• HA + mode of transport in prepositional case (if needed)

• B/HA + destination in accusative case

Many of the example sentences provided here are variations of this formula. Here is a sample sentence using the complete formula:

Каждый день дети ездят на велосипедах в школу. (Every day the kids ride their bikes to school.)

Let's examine its structure:

A Closer Look at Russian Verbs of Motion

The 2 Main Russian Verbs of Motion

The primary Russian verbs of motion you will encounter, based on the method of movement, are:

These two verbs are used to express both movement by a specific transport method and movement toward a destination.

Expressing mode of transportation

Since the ехать and ездить verb forms involve transport, it is also important to learn the different types of transportation and how to express them accurately.

Simply use HA + the type of transport in the prepositional case. For example:

Expressing movement toward a destination

To indicate that you are going to a place, you typically use B or HA + the accusative case. For instance:

“Going” by Other Methods of Movement

Some Russian verbs of motion provide more specific information about the manner of movement. Here are additional verbs used to convey motion with greater detail.

These are listed as unidirectional-multidirectional pairs, in that order:

Note: Гнать / Гонять is not typically used for “driving a car,” unless it implies fast or reckless driving. ( Вести / Водить is used for “driving a vehicle,” as shown below.) This verb pair generally means to force someone or something to move, such as “driving a herd.”

Фермеры гоняли скот на рынок. (The farmers drove the livestock to market.)

However, it can be used informally to describe driving at high speed:

Куда ты так гонишь? (Where are you driving so fast?)

“Carrying,” “Leading” and “Taking’” Russian Verbs of Motion

Four verb pairs fall into the “carrying” category. These can be challenging for learners because they involve moving an object or a person.

Each of these pairs is explained in more detail below:

Perfective and Imperfective Verbs of Motion

Like all Russian verbs, verbs of motion have perfective and imperfective aspects.

As you may have observed, directionality overlaps with some meanings usually defined by aspect. So far, we have only discussed imperfective verbs. Perfective unidirectional verbs typically describe the start of movement, while perfective multidirectional verbs often refer to movement that occurred or will occur for a specific duration, frequently emphasizing the time limit.

Perfective Verbs

Perfective verbs of motion are used to:

• indicate the beginning of an action
• show a change in an action that is in progress or with the future perfective of another verb.

For example:

A key point about verbs of motion and aspect is that both unidirectional and multidirectional verbs can be perfective.

For instance:

• лететь (imperfective) and полететь (perfective) are unidirectional (also known as concrete)
• летать (imperfective) and полетать (perfective) are multidirectional (also known as abstract)

Furthermore, perfective verbs only have two tenses: past and future.

Imperfective Verbs

The imperfective aspect is used for actions that are:

• in progress
• repeatable
• not completed
• indicative of a duration of time

For example:

Note that both unidirectional and multidirectional verbs use the imperfective aspect.

Prepositions and Russian Verbs of Motion

The manner of movement influences both the verb choice and the accompanying preposition.

Here are the most common prepositions used with Russian verbs of motion:

Note that the preposition “У” is not used directly with verbs of movement. It describes a current location (“I’m near X”). Movement using this preposition is implied through past or future tense (“I will be near X,” “I was near X”), suggesting movement rather than stating it directly.

Consider these examples:

Я буду у твоего офиса через час. (I will be near your office in an hour.)

Они были у памятника, когда они мне позвонили. (They were near the monument when they called me.)

Prefixes for Russian Verbs of Motion

Similar to other Russian verbs, verbs of motion use prefixes to add specific meanings and context.

Some of the most frequent prefixes used with Russian verbs of motion include:

Do you feel confident about Russian verbs of motion? If so, you can test your knowledge with this online proficiency test. Numerous resources are available for practice, and we suggest this handbook from Yale that concentrates specifically on this complex topic.

With these verbs of motion in your Russian vocabulary, your language abilities will continue to advance!

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