Present -o

Present Verbs in -o

Level 1

skaityti (read): skaitau, skaitai, skaito, skaitome, skaitote, skaito

How It Works

The endings. Take the third-person form in -o:

  • aš skaitau · tu skaitai · jis, ji skaito
  • mes skaitome · jūs skaitote · jie, jos skaito

Common verbs. skaityti – skaito (read), rašyti – rašo (write), daryti – daro (do, make), matyti – mato (see), žinoti – žino (know), bijoti – bijo (be afraid).

A hint, not a rule. Most verbs in -yti are in this group, but not all, so check the third-person form when you learn a verb. See the three principal parts.

Reflexive verbs. For unprefixed reflexive verbs, the ending includes the reflexive marker and some vowels also change: mokytis → mokausi, mokaisi, mokosi, mokomės, mokotės (learn). See reflexive verbs.

Negation. Ne- is written together with the verb: nežinau (I don't know). See negation with ne-.

Examples (6)

  1. Ką tu skaitai?

    What are you reading?

  2. Aš nežinau.

    I don't know.

    Žinoti: žinau, and ne- is written together with the verb.

  3. Ji rašo laišką.

    She is writing a letter.

  4. Ką jūs darote savaitgalį?

    What are you doing on the weekend?

  5. Mes matome jūrą.

    We can see the sea.

    Lithuanian often uses plain matome where English adds "can".

  6. Aš mokausi lietuvių kalbos.

    I am learning Lithuanian.

    A reflexive verb from this group: mokosi → mokausi.

Common Mistakes

  • Using -u from the -a group for "I".

    Aš skaitu knygą.
    Aš skaitau knygą.

    In the -o group, the I-form ends in -au: skaitau.

  • Replacing the o in the we and you forms.

    Mes skaitame knygą.
    Mes skaitome knygą.

    The o of skaito stays: skaitome, skaitote.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Present -oLevel 1Present Verbs in -o

Learn This First

The -o group is one present-tense conjugation pattern.

Words in This Pattern