The Prefix за- for Starting

Starting an Action with За-

Level 5Sounds Like prystaŭka za- pačatku

За- can mean start to: Раптам усе засмяяліся. (Suddenly everyone burst out laughing.)

How It Works

One meaning of the prefix за- is to start. It turns a verb of sound, movement or feeling into a perfective verb for the moment the action begins, often suddenly:

  • смяяцца (laugh) → засмяяцца (burst out laughing)
  • плакаць (cry) → заплакаць (start crying)
  • спяваць (sing) → заспяваць (start singing)
  • іграць (play) → зайграць (start playing)
  • гаварыць (talk) → загаварыць (start talking)
  • шумець (make noise) → зашумець (start to rustle or roar)

Perfective, so no present. Like any perfective verb, its present-tense form means the future: Зараз ён заспявае. (He is about to start singing.)

Do not add пачаць. These verbs already mean start. With пачаць, use the plain imperfective instead: засмяяўся or пачаў смяяцца. See aspect after begin.

Motion verbs. The starting meaning attaches to the round-trip verbs: хадзіць → захадзіць (start pacing), бегаць → забегаць (start running around). With the one-way verbs, за- means something else: зайсці means to drop by.

Other meanings of за-. The same prefix also means going behind, dropping by, or closing (зачыніць). So not every за- verb means starting. Look for a verb of sound, feeling or movement.

Examples (6)

  1. Раптам усе засмяяліся.

    Suddenly everyone burst out laughing.

    Word by Word: Suddenly all started-laughing.

  2. Дзіця прачнулася і заплакала.

    The child woke up and started crying.

    Word by Word: Child woke-up and started-crying.

  3. Аркестр зайграў вальс.

    The orchestra struck up a waltz.

    Word by Word: Orchestra started-playing waltz.

  4. Бабуля заспявала старую калыханку.

    Grandma began to sing an old lullaby.

    Word by Word: Grandma started-singing old lullaby.

  5. Мы доўга маўчалі, а потым усе адразу загаварылі.

    We were silent for a long time, and then everyone started talking at once.

    Word by Word: We long were-silent, and then all at-once started-talking.

  6. У лесе зашумеў вецер.

    The wind began to rustle in the forest.

    Word by Word: In forest started-rustling wind.

Common Mistakes

  • Combining пачаць with a за- verb that already means start.

    Раптам усе пачалі засмяяцца.
    Раптам усе засмяяліся.

    Засмяяцца already means to start laughing, and пачаць needs an imperfective infinitive. Say засмяяліся, or пачалі смяяцца.

  • Using a one-way motion verb to mean start walking around.

    Ён нервова зайшоў па пакоі.
    Ён нервова захадзіў па пакоі.

    The intended meaning is He began pacing the room nervously. Зайсці means to drop in; the starting meaning comes from хадзіць, so the verb is захадзіць.

How It Connects

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The Prefix за- for StartingLevel 5Starting an Action with За-

Learn This First

Starting with за- needs prefixes and begin.