Witnessed, Reported and Inferred Forms

Level 3Sounds Like preizkazno naklonenie

When you talk about a past event, the Bulgarian verb can show how you know: you saw it, someone told you, or you worked it out.

How It Works

1. One event, three sources.

  • Witnessed: Вчера валя. (It rained yesterday. I saw it.)
  • Reported: Вчера валяло. (It rained yesterday, I hear.)
  • Inferred: Улиците са мокри. Сигурно е валяло. (The streets are wet. It must have rained.)

2. Witnessed forms. The ordinary aorist and imperfect are used for what you saw or took part in. They are also used for well-known facts: Ботев загина през 1876 година. This is the default way to tell a story about your own life.

3. Reported forms. These pass on what you heard or read: news, gossip, messages. In the third person they are the bare л-participle: той дошъл, тя дошла, те дошли. They are very common in speech: Мария се омъжила! (Maria got married, I heard!) See reported forms in the third person.

4. Inferred forms. These keep е or са: Той е дошъл, Те са тръгнали. They are the same as the present perfect, so context decides. With words like сигурно (surely) or after a clue, they present a conclusion. The fuller system is in conclusive forms.

5. In the first and second person. Only the third person drops the auxiliary. With аз, ти, ние, вие the reported forms keep съм, си, сме, сте: Казват, че съм бил болен. (They say I was ill.) See reported forms in the first and second person.

6. Beyond the basics. Fairy tales are told in reported forms: Имало едно време... (see reported forms in folk tales). Adding бил shows doubt about what you heard (see dubitative forms), and the reported form can also express surprise: Ти си бил много умен! (Well, you are very clever!), see reported forms expressing surprise.

Examples (6)

  1. Вчера валя.

    It rained yesterday. (I saw it.)

  2. Вчера валяло.

    It rained yesterday, I hear.

    Валяло has no е: the speaker is repeating what someone said.

  3. Улиците са мокри. Сигурно е валяло.

    The streets are wet. It must have rained.

    With е: a conclusion from the wet streets.

  4. Иван дойде в осем.

    Ivan came at eight. (I was there.)

  5. Иван дошъл още в осем.

    Ivan came as early as eight, I am told.

  6. Имало едно време един цар.

    Once upon a time there was a king.

    Fairy tales use reported forms because the teller did not see the events.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the reported form for an event you saw yourself.

    Бях на мача и нашите спечелили.
    Бях на мача и нашите спечелиха.

    You were at the match, so you saw the result. Спечелили would tell the listener you only heard about it.

  • Dropping the auxiliary in the first or second person.

    Аз бил болен.
    Аз съм бил болен.

    Only the third person drops the auxiliary. With аз, keep съм.

How It Connects

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Witnessed, Reported and Inferred FormsLevel 3

Learn This First

Witnessed, reported and inferred forms need the aorist and perfect.

Words in This Pattern