English has "go". Ukrainian splits it by how you move and whether the trip is one-directional. There are eight core pairs. In each, one verb is for movement in one direction right now (determinate), and the other is for habits, round trips and movement with no single direction (indeterminate).
| Meaning | Any direction, habit, round trip | One direction, right now |
|---|---|---|
| go on foot | ходи́ти (A1) | іти́ (A1), йти (A1) |
| go by vehicle | ї́здити (A2) | ї́хати (A1) |
| carry | носи́ти (A2) | нести́ (A2) |
| convey by vehicle | возити (B1) | везти (B1) |
| lead | водити (A2) | вести́ (B1) |
| run | бігати (A1) | бі́гти (A2) |
| fly | літати (A1) | леті́ти (A2) |
| swim, sail | плавати (A1) | плисти (B1), пливти (A2) |
The level beside each verb is its PULS validated level.
The difference in one example
- іти́ / йти: "Я йду додому", I am walking home (now, one direction).
- ходи́ти: "Я ходжу на роботу", I walk to work (a habit, there and back).
Prefixes
Add a prefix and the pair gains a direction and usually a finished aspect: при- (arrival), ви- (out), за- (drop in), пере- (across). Across the eight pairs the study checked 804 prefixed forms against the corpus and found 211 of 256 prefix-and-root cells in real use.
The full grid is in the B1 aspect and motion table.