20. Gerunds and Participles
Gerunds and participles are not commonly used in colloquial Belarusian, but they are found in literature.
20.1 Present imperfect gerunds
These gerunds are formed by conjugating an imperfect infinitive of a
verb for the 3rd person plural, removing the final -ць, and appending the ending -чы. They are often also used
as a present active participle, but they do not decline.
| Infin. | br /> | rd Pers. Pl. | erund |
вярта́цца |
to turn* | ярта́юцца |
ярта́ючыся |
гавары́ць |
to speak* | аво́раць |
аво́рачы |
піса́ць |
to write* | і́шуць |
і́шучы |
хадзі́ць |
to walk* | о́дзяць |
о́дзячы |
чыта́ць |
to read* | ыта́юць |
ыта́ючы |
Яго́ ву́сны заварушы́ліся, нібы́ тво́рачы святу́ю малі́тву. |
His lips moved, as though forming a sacred prayer.* | td>Нава́т бу́дучы пара́неным, ён не меў пра́ва на спако́йнае жыццё́. |
Even being wounded, he didn’t have the right to a peaceful life.* |
20.2 Past perfect gerunds
These gerunds are formed from perfective verbs by conjugating the
verb for the past tense masculine singular and adding the ending -шы.
напіса́ць |
to write* | апіса́ў |
апіса́ўшы |
зрабі́ць |
to do* | рабі́ў |
рабі́ўшы |
вярну́цца |
to return* | ярну́ўся |
ярну́ўшыся |
прыне́сці |
to bring* | рынё́с |
рынё́сшы |
пабе́гчы |
to run* | абе́г |
абе́гшы |
Напіса́ўшы, што трэ́ба было́, ён пача́ў по́ркацца ў папе́рах. |
Having written what was necessary, he began to pore over the papers.* | td>Перанё́сшы яго́, ры́бы до́ўга не вярта́ліся. |
Having carried him over, the fish did not return for a long time.* |
20.3 Past passive participles
Participles are adjectives, obeying all the same rules that other
adjectives do. Most of them are formed by attaching –аны, or –ены to
the root of the infinitive. There really isn’t much rhyme or reason to
the formation, each participle needs to be memorized. These participles
can be formed from either aspect, but they are formed much more often
from the perfective aspect.
| Infin. | br /> | Past Pass. Part. | <td>піса́ць |
to write*</td> | пі́саны |
<td>звяза́ць |
to bind* (Perfectiv</td> | звя́заны |
<td>купі́ць |
to buy *(Perfective | ку́плены |
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зрабі́ць |
to do, to make* (Per | зро́блены |
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скла́сці |
to stack *(Perfective | скла́дзены |
Monosyllable infinitives form the past passive participle by
removing the suffix -ць and
appending -ты.
мыць |
to wash* | мы́ты |
<td>біць |
to hit*</td> | бі́ты |
|
шыць |
to sew* | шы́ты |
У вы́стаўцы ёсць кара́н белару́скі, пі́саны тата́рскімі лі́тарамі. |
In the exhibit there is a Belarusian Koran, written with the Tatar alphabet.* | td>Яна́ была́ падо́бна да зро́бленай з ка́меню фігу́ркі. |
She was like a statue wrought from stone.*</td> | |
Давяло́ся-б яму́ за́раз выціра́ць свой твар ад слядо́ў, а галаве́ прышло́ся-б лазнаё́міцца з бі́тым шклом, |
He just happened to peel his face away from the footprints, and his head happened to become aquainted with the smashed glass.* |