ты
Informal Singular You
Ты means "you" when you talk to one friend, family member, child or peer: Ты дома? (Are you at home?). For an adult you do not know well, use вы.
How It Works
Who you call ты
- Friends, classmates and people your age in casual settings.
- Family members, including parents and grandparents.
- Children and pets.
With a teacher, a shop assistant, an official or an older stranger, use вы until they invite you to switch. Using ты too early can sound rude.
Verb endings
Ты takes -еш in the first conjugation (spelled -эш after a hard consonant under stress and -аш after a hard consonant without stress) or -іш in the second conjugation (-ыш after a hard consonant): ты размаўляеш, ты бярэш, ты пішаш, ты ходзіш, ты гаворыш. See Present Tense with Ты.
Other forms of ты
- цябе — you (object): Я цябе чую. (I hear you.) Як цябе завуць?
- табе — to you: Я дам табе кнігу. (I will give you the book.)
- табой / табою — with you: Я пайду з табой.
Watch the ў: after ты, a word starting with у changes it to ў: Ты ўжо дома? (Are you home already?).
Examples (6)
- Ты дома?
Are you at home?
Word by Word: You at-home?
- Ты размаўляеш па-беларуску?
Do you speak Belarusian?
Word by Word: You speak in-Belarusian?
The verb ends in -еш after ты.
- Адкуль ты?
Where are you from?
Word by Word: Where-from you?
- Ты ўжо паснедаў?
Have you had breakfast yet?
Word by Word: You already had-breakfast?
Asked of a boy or man; to a woman: Ты ўжо паснедала? After ты, ужо becomes ўжо.
- Мама, ты мяне чуеш?
Mom, can you hear me?
Word by Word: Mom, you me hear?
Ты is normal with parents and family.
- Дзе ты жывеш?
Where do you live?
Word by Word: Where you live?
Common Mistakes
Using the "he/she" verb form with ты.
Ты размаўляе па-беларуску?Ты размаўляеш па-беларуску?Ты needs the ending -еш or -іш (or its spellings -эш, -аш, -ыш). Размаўляе is the form for ён or яна.
Using ты with a teacher or an adult stranger (a register mismatch, not a grammar error).
Ты можаш паўтарыць? (to your teacher)Вы можаце паўтарыць?With people you should address politely, use вы and its ending -еце or -іце.
Using ты as an object.
Я люблю ты.Я люблю цябе.When "you" is the object, use цябе.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Ты follows я.
Related Patterns
- выPlural and Polite You
Вы is the polite and plural "you", used where ты would be too familiar.
Level 1 - ты + -еш/-ішPresent Tense with Ты
Shows the verb endings that go with ты.
Level 1 - Як цябе завуць?Asking Someone's Name
Uses цябе, the object form of ты, to ask a name.
Level 1 - Personal Pronoun Case Forms
Lists цябе, табе and табой, the other forms of ты.
Level 2 - мой / твойPossessives Мой and Твой
Твой (your) is the possessive that matches ты.
Level 1
Words in This Pattern
Practice ты in Bubblegum
Poppy, your AI tutor, writes Belarusian lessons at your level. Tap any grammar point in a lesson to see its full explanation.
