GrammatikHilfsverben

In Russian, there are very few auxiliary verbs compared to English. In fact, Russian usually expresses meaning without separate helper verbs.

However, there are still some important verbs that function similarly to auxiliary verbs in certain constructions.

1. The verb “to be” (быть)

The most important auxiliary-like verb in Russian is быть (to be).

Present tense

In the present tense, быть is actually omitted:

• Я студент. (I am a student.)
• Она дома. (She is at home.)

There is no verb “am / is / are” in these sentences.

Past tense

In the past, быть appears and behaves like a normal verb:

• Я был дома. (I was at home; male speaker)
• Я была дома. (I was at home; female speaker)

Future tense

быть is also used to form the future tense of imperfective verbs:

• Я буду читать. (I will be reading / I will read)
• Мы будем работать. (We will work)

Here, буду, будешь, etc. act like an auxiliary, while the main verb stays in the infinitive.

2. No “do” auxiliary

Unlike English, Russian does not use a helper verb like “do” for questions or negatives.

Compare:

• English: Do you work?

• Russian: Ты работаешь?

• English: I do not work.

• Russian: Я не работаю.

The verb itself carries the meaning - no extra auxiliary is needed.

3. Modal verbs (semi-auxiliary use)

Some verbs behave similarly to auxiliary verbs because they combine with another verb:

• мочь (can, to be able to)
• хотеть (to want)
• должен (must, should)

They are followed by an infinitive:

• Я могу читать. (I can read.)
• Я хочу работать. (I want to work.)
• Я должен учиться. (I must study.)

These are called modal verbs and play a similar role to true auxiliaries. Read more about them here.

4. Aspect replaces auxiliaries

In English, auxiliary verbs are often used to express tense and aspect (e.g. “I have done”, “I am doing”).

Russian usually expresses this using verb aspect instead:

• Я делал. (I was doing / I did - imperfective)
• Я сделал. (I did / I have done - perfective)

No auxiliary like “have” is needed.

5. Summary

• Russian has very few true auxiliary verbs.
• быть is the main one:
  • omitted in present
  • used in past and future
  • forms the future of imperfective verbs (буду делать)
• Russian does not use “do” for questions or negatives.
• Modal verbs (e.g. мочь, хотеть) behave similarly to auxiliaries.
• Verb aspect replaces many auxiliary constructions found in English.