Thread: What's the deal with По?

I saw this question on some other Topic, but I can't remember where. And also, they didn't answer it to my satisfaction.

What's the deal with the "по" before some verbs? Like поесть, пообедать, поеxoть? It seems that in some uses and/or conjugations, the по is not used. Can somebody shed some light on this please?

Thanks to all!

Platinum

d'oh! More learning in progress!
-Fantom

по - to do something for a while

поговорить, почитать, поиграть

its not always perfective. It can be imperfective too.

Купать -V- Покупать

It's how the verbs are man, dont ask why just learn them. Why does the word Drawer have the word draw in it? Why ask why, its just a word.

Originally Posted by Dogboy182

its not always perfective. It can be imperfective too.

Купать -V- Покупать

Купить - покупать

But that is an exception, which aren't many.

Think of it this way:
1. Any prefix to the verb usually makes it perfective (that inlcudes по- , пере-, при-, на-, о-, с- etc. etc. etc.). You understand the difference between perfective and imperfective verbs?
2. По- as saibot says means a little, but can also mean: for a while, beginning of an action, limitation of an action, indicating an action taken by many people... amongst other things

Originally Posted by kalinka_vinnie

Купить - покупать

Oops, typo. I didnt mean bathe, i swear.

Originally Posted by Dogboy182

its not always perfective. It can be imperfective too.

Купать -V- Покупать

It's how the verbs are man, dont ask why just learn them. Why does the word Drawer have the word draw in it? Why ask why, its just a word.

I like dogboy's response. All this "perfective", "imperfective", "declarative", "prepositional". BAH!!! What the Heck? I just learn the words and let that be that!
Thanky to all!

That's the hard way Platinum. If you understand how the verbs work, you can learn new words as easy as 1-2-9999!

Hey, back off! I finally have someone who likes me, don't ruin it for me.

And its not the hard way. You just roll with the punches and take it as it comes... No use studying grammar charts and all the tiny neuances for hours on end if you dont even understand what they mean.

Dogboy quoted you probably the only verb in the Russian language where the prefix по- does not function to create a perfective verb. At least I can't think of any others, but maybe he can. Otherwise по- added to a verb makes it perfective. Sometimes it adds no additional nuances, just adds "perfectiveness", but often it can add the notion of "a bit" as noted above. Also means the beginning of an action, as in пойти "set out," from идти "walk". In general, adding a prefix to any verb makes the verb perfective and adds an additional nuance to the meaning. When you learn verbs, you usually learn the imperfective form PLUS the corresponding perfective form with no additional nuance.

To find out the skinny on questions like this, you need to consult A Comprehensive Russian Grammar by Terence Wade. This is the kind of book you consult after your 4th year of Russian language study.

I wrote my dissertation on verbs,
чайка

Originally Posted by chaika

Dogboy quoted you probably the only verb in the Russian language where the prefix по- does not function to create a perfective verb. At least I can't think of any others, but maybe he can. Otherwise по- added to a verb makes it perfective. Sometimes it adds no additional nuances, just adds "perfectiveness", but often it can add the notion of "a bit" as noted above. Also means the beginning of an action, as in пойти "set out," from идти "walk". In general, adding a prefix to any verb makes the verb perfective and adds an additional nuance to the meaning. When you learn verbs, you usually learn the imperfective form PLUS the corresponding perfective form with no additional nuance.

To find out the skinny on questions like this, you need to consult A Comprehensive Russian Grammar by Terence Wade. This is the kind of book you consult after your 4th year of Russian language study.

I wrote my dissertation on verbs,
чайка

Again, I have no idea what all those works like "perfective", "past perfect participle", "infinity to the 4th power" verbs. I don't even know what all these things are called in English. I jus' wanna bee abel ta speek Rushhin, I don' care if I know all the fancy talk. Hee hee.

I ordered the New Penguin book, I'm gonna start on that when I get it.

Originally Posted by Platinum

Originally Posted by chaika

Dogboy quoted you probably the only verb in the Russian language where the prefix по- does not function to create a perfective verb. At least I can't think of any others, but maybe he can. Otherwise по- added to a verb makes it perfective. Sometimes it adds no additional nuances, just adds "perfectiveness", but often it can add the notion of "a bit" as noted above. Also means the beginning of an action, as in пойти "set out," from идти "walk". In general, adding a prefix to any verb makes the verb perfective and adds an additional nuance to the meaning. When you learn verbs, you usually learn the imperfective form PLUS the corresponding perfective form with no additional nuance.

To find out the skinny on questions like this, you need to consult A Comprehensive Russian Grammar by Terence Wade. This is the kind of book you consult after your 4th year of Russian language study.

I wrote my dissertation on verbs,
чайка

Again, I have no idea what all those works like "perfective", "past perfect participle", "infinity to the 4th power" verbs. I don't even know what all these things are called in English. I jus' wanna bee abel ta speek Rushhin, I don' care if I know all the fancy talk. Hee hee.

I ordered the New Penguin book, I'm gonna start on that when I get it.

In order to learn a new language, you are going to HAVE to know these words.

Originally Posted by Platinum

Again, I have no idea what all those works like "perfective", "past perfect participle", "infinity to the 4th power" verbs. I don't even know what all these things are called in English. I jus' wanna bee abel ta speek Rushhin, I don' care if I know all the fancy talk. Hee hee.

I ordered the New Penguin book, I'm gonna start on that when I get it.

Infinity to the 4th power doesn't exist, you have to watch out for the Infinitive to the 4th power. For example the infinitive of the fourth power of 'go' in English is 'run sideways', it is pretty simple. Luckily in Russian there are only 4 powers to the infinitive, while English has a total of 8 (consider 'jump', 'walk', 'stop', 'stop jumping', 'walk jumping' etc.). Of course "to the Xth power" is not used in grammatical terms, the term is the Xth Meticicle. In Russian, if you have a past perfective gerund with only two accusative imperitvations, you are pretty much save the trouble of learning all 25 of them, since they all start with тётя- and котик-. Knowing this important clue of the language will make it SO much easier learning the verbs.

For example if you know the above and know the verb "писать" (to write) you automatically know what "нюхать" (to smell smthng) "летить" (to fly) and "открыть" (to open) means.

Good luck!

Lay off the crack, Kalinka!
-Fantom

Originally Posted by fantom605

Lay off the crack, Kalinka!
-Fantom

LOL for real. Stop trying to scare him. Everyone knows...well. Nevermind.