Aorist Versus Imperfect

Level 3Sounds Like aorist i imperfekt

In a story, the aorist is the events and the imperfect is the scenery: Валеше, когато излязох. (It was raining when I went out.)

How It Works

1. Events and background.

  • Aorist, one event after another: Станах, облякох се и излязох. (I got up, got dressed and went out.)
  • Imperfect, the scene: Беше тъмно и нищо не се виждаше. (It was dark and nothing could be seen.)

2. Interrupted actions. The action that was going on takes the imperfect; the one that happened takes the aorist: Когато телефонът звънна, аз спях. (When the phone rang, I was sleeping.)

3. Two things at the same time. With докато, both background actions are usually in the imperfect: Докато четях, той готвеше.

4. Habits. Repeated past actions take the imperfect: Като дете всяко лято ходех на море. See the imperfect for habits.

5. Spotting the forms. Every verb ends in -х in the first person of both tenses, so look at the ти/той forms: aorist чете, imperfect четеше; aorist чака, imperfect чакаше. For -ам verbs the аз forms are even identical: чаках.

6. Tense is not aspect. Both tenses exist for both aspects. An imperfective verb in the aorist sums up an activity (the imperfective aorist): Вчера цял ден четох.

Examples (6)

  1. Валеше, когато излязох.

    It was raining when I went out.

    Валеше (imperfect) is the background; излязох (aorist) is the event.

  2. Докато четях, той готвеше.

    While I was reading, he was cooking.

    Two actions in progress at the same time, both in the imperfect.

  3. Когато телефонът звънна, аз спях.

    When the phone rang, I was sleeping.

  4. Като дете всяко лято ходех на море.

    As a child, I went to the seaside every summer.

    A past habit takes the imperfect.

  5. Станах, облякох се и излязох.

    I got up, got dressed and went out.

    A chain of events, all in the aorist.

  6. Беше тъмно и нищо не се виждаше.

    It was dark and nothing could be seen.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the aorist for an action that was interrupted.

    Когато телефонът звънна, аз спах.
    Когато телефонът звънна, аз спях.

    You were in the middle of sleeping when the phone rang, so use the imperfect спях. Спах would present the sleep as a whole, finished event.

  • Using a perfective aorist for a repeated past habit.

    Като дете всяко лято отидох на море.
    Като дете всяко лято ходех на море.

    Всяко лято describes a habit, so the verb needs the imperfect. Отидох names one single trip.

How It Connects

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Aorist Versus ImperfectLevel 3

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Aorist versus imperfect needs both tenses.

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Patterns that build on this one.