бути

• буть (butʹ)
• бить (bytʹ) — archaic

From Old East Slavic бꙑти (byti), from Proto-Slavic *byti. The u in the infinitive and past tense was probably influenced by the future tense. Compare Pannonian Rusyn буц (buc) as well as (rare and possibly hyper-corrected) Old Novgorodian буть (butĭ) for the infinitive and Belarusian быць (bycʹ) for the senses.

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бу́ти • (búty) impf

1. to be

   У ме́не є пита́ння ― U méne je pytánnja ― I have a question.

   Він був до́бре відо́мий на ба́тьківщині. ― Vin buv dóbre vidómyj na bátʹkivščyni. ― He was well known in his homeland.

2. (auxiliary, future tense) used to form the future tense of imperfect verbs

   Бу́ду роби́ти ― Búdu robýty ― I will be doing.

   Жи́ти бу́де ― Žýty búde ― He/She/It will live (be living).

3. (auxiliary, past tense) used to form the pluperfect tense

   Я був сказа́в / Я була́ сказа́ла ― Ja buv skazáv / Ja bulá skazála ― I had said

   Вона́ пила́ була́ ― Voná pylá bulá ― She had been drinking

   • 1991 August 24, Акт проголошення незалежності України (Supreme Soviet of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic)‎:

     Виходячи із смертельної небезпеки, яка нависла була над Україною в зв'язку з державним переворотом в СРСР 19 серпня 1991 року,

     Vyxodjačy iz smertelʹnoji nebezpeky, jaka navysla bula nad Ukrajinoju v zvʺjazku z deržavnym perevorotom v SRSR 19 serpnja 1991 roku,

     Coming from the mortal danger, which had hung over Ukraine in connection with the state coup in the USSR on August 19, 1991,

• Omitted in the present tense except in the third-person singular "є", which is used occasionally to express possession or definition or for emphasis.
• To express A=B (to indicate that the subject and object are the same), in the present tense, the verb is omitted and — can be used, e.g.:

  мій брат — вчи́тель ― mij brat — včýtelʹ ― My brother is a teacher

• "—" is not used when the subject is a pronoun, e.g.:

  я студе́нт ― ja studént ― I am a student

• Omitted in the present tense to indicate that the subject plays the role of the predicate nominal

  вона́ вродли́ва ― voná vrodlýva ― she is beautiful

• Hrinchenko, Borys, editor (1924), “бу́ти”, in Словарь української мови [Dictionary of the Ukrainian Language]‎ (in Russian), volumes 1: А – Н, Berlin: Ukrainske Slowo, page 158
• Rusanivskyi, V. M., editor (2010), “бу́ти”, in Словник української мови: у 20 т. [Dictionary of the Ukrainian Language: in 20 vols] (in Ukrainian), volumes 1 (а – бязь), Kyiv: Naukova Dumka, →ISBN