Lenguia | A1 Bulgarian Grammar: 71 Topics & Examples

Every Bulgarian noun belongs to one of three genders: masculine, feminine, or neuter. You can usually tell the gender from the ending of the basic (dictionary) form. Masculine nouns typically end in a consonant: стол, град, мъж. Feminine nouns typically end in -а or -я: жена, маса, стая. Neuter nouns typically end in -о or -е: дете, село, море. Gender matters because it controls everything that agrees with the noun: the definite article (столът, жената, детето), the adjective (нов стол, нова маса, ново дете), and the demonstrative. A quick test is to put 'this' in front: този (m), тази (f), това (n). There is no case ending — gender is shown by these endings and by agreement, not by changing the noun for its role in the sentence.

Key rule

Masculine nouns end in a consonant, feminine in -а/-я, neuter in -о/-е, and the gender controls the article, adjective, and demonstrative that go with the noun.

Examples

Този стол е нов.
Тази стол е нов.
Стол ends in a consonant, so it is masculine and takes този, not the feminine тази.
Тази маса е голяма.
Този маса е голяма.
Маса ends in -а, so it is feminine and takes тази, not the masculine този.
Това дете е малко.
Този дете е малко.
Дете ends in -е, so it is neuter and takes това, not the masculine този.

Common mistakes

Treating a noun in -а as masculine
Този книга е интересна.
Тази книга е интересна.
Nouns ending in -а are feminine, so they take тази and the feminine article -та.
Treating a noun in -е/-о as masculine
Този момче е високо.
Това момче е високо.
Nouns ending in -е or -о are neuter and take това and the article -то.

A1Agreement

Plural of Masculine Nouns (-и, -ове, -е)

Множествено число — мъжки род

Masculine nouns form their plural in a few main ways. Nouns with more than one syllable usually add -и: студент → студенти, учител → учители, лекар → лекари. Short, one-syllable nouns usually add -ове: град → градове, стол → столове, син → синове (sometimes with a spelling change). A small group of common nouns takes -е: мъж → мъже, цар → царе, кон → коне. When the noun ends in -к, -г, -х, the consonant softens before -и (войник → войници, бряг → брегове). The plural is the form you use for two or more, but remember that after numbers masculine non-person nouns use a special counting form instead (два стола, not два столове) — that is a separate rule.

Key rule

Polysyllabic masculine nouns add -и, one-syllable ones usually add -ове, and a small set adds -е (мъж → мъже).

Examples

В стаята има два стола, а тук са новите столове.
В стаята има два стола, а тук са новите столи.
The plural of the monosyllabic стол is столове; столи is not a valid form.
Имам много приятели.
Имам много приятелове.
Приятел is polysyllabic, so its plural is приятели with -и, not -ове.
Градовете в България са красиви.
Градите в България са красиви.
Град is one syllable and takes -ове → градове (definite градовете), not -и.

Common mistakes

Adding -и to a one-syllable noun
Тук има високи градове и стари столи.
…стари столове.
Monosyllabic стол takes -ове (столове), not -и.
Adding -ове to a polysyllabic noun
Имам трима учителове.
Имам трима учители.
Polysyllabic учител takes -и (учители).

A1Agreement

Plural of Feminine (-и) & Neuter (-а/-та) Nouns

Множествено число — женски и среден род

Feminine and neuter nouns have their own plural endings. Feminine nouns ending in -а or -я replace it with -и: жена → жени, книга → книги, стая → стаи. Neuter nouns ending in -о usually replace it with -а: село → села, място → места, легло → легла. Neuter nouns ending in -е often take -ета or -я: дете → деца (irregular!), море → морета, цвете → цветя. A few feminine nouns ending in a consonant add -и too: нощ → нощи, песен → песни. The plural form is used for two or more. There is no special counting form for feminine and neuter nouns, so after numbers you simply use the plural: две книги, три села, пет морета.

Key rule

Feminine nouns make their plural in -и (жена → жени) and neuter nouns in -а or -ета/-я (село → села, море → морета), and neither has a counting form after numbers.

Examples

На масата има две книги.
На масата има две книга.
Книга is feminine: its plural is книги with -и, and after a number you simply use this plural, not the singular книга.
Тези жени са лекарки.
Тези жена са лекарки.
The plural of жена is жени (-и); here the plural subject needs жени, not the singular жена.
В района има много села.
В района има много селове.
Село is neuter and forms its plural in -а (села), not the masculine -ове.

Common mistakes

Keeping the singular after a number
Имам две книга.
Имам две книги.
After a number you use the plural; the feminine plural of книга is книги.
Using a masculine ending on a neuter noun
В района има три селове.
В района има три села.
Neuter село forms its plural in -а (села), never -ове.

A1Agreement

Adjective Agreement in Gender (-Ø/-а/-о)

Съгласуване на прилагателните по род

A Bulgarian adjective changes its ending to match the gender of the noun. The pattern is simple: masculine has no ending (the bare form), feminine adds -а, neuter adds -о. So with нов ('new') you get нов стол (m), нова маса (f), ново легло (n). The same works for any adjective: голям → голям, голяма, голямо; хубав → хубав, хубава, хубаво. A few adjectives in -ен drop the е in the feminine and neuter (зелен → зелена → зелено, but болен → болна → болно). The adjective agrees with its noun whether it stands in front of it (нова къща) or after the verb 'to be' (Къщата е нова). Getting the ending right is one of the first habits you build in Bulgarian.

Key rule

An adjective takes no ending for masculine, -а for feminine, and -о for neuter, matching its noun (нов стол, нова маса, ново легло).

Examples

Това е нов стол.
Това е нова стол.
Стол is masculine, so the adjective stays in the bare form нов, not the feminine нова.
Имам нова кола.
Имам нов кола.
Кола is feminine, so the adjective must add -а → нова.
Това е ново легло.
Това е нов легло.
Легло is neuter, so the adjective adds -о → ново.

Common mistakes

Feminine ending on a masculine noun
нова молив
нов молив
Молив is masculine, so the adjective stays in the bare masculine form нов.
Masculine (bare) form on a feminine noun
хубав песен
хубава песен
Песен is feminine, so the adjective adds -а → хубава.

A1Agreement

Adjective Agreement in the Plural (-и)

Съгласуване на прилагателните — мн. число

In the plural, Bulgarian adjectives have just one ending: -и, for all three genders. You no longer choose between masculine, feminine, and neuter — every plural adjective ends in -и. So нов becomes нови for all: нови столове (m), нови книги (f), нови легла (n). The same applies to any adjective: голям → големи, хубав → хубави, малък → малки. Some adjectives show a vowel change before -и: голям → големи, бял → бели, червен → червени. This makes the plural the easiest agreement to learn: once a noun is plural, the adjective is simply the -и form, whatever the gender. It works both before the noun (нови книги) and after съм (Книгите са нови).

Key rule

All plural adjectives end in -и regardless of gender (нови столове, нови книги, нови деца), with possible stem-vowel changes like голям → големи.

Examples

Имам нови столове.
Имам нова столове.
With a plural noun the adjective is the single plural form нови, not the feminine singular нова.
Тук има нови книги.
Тук има нови книга.
Plural книги takes the plural adjective нови; the singular книга would not agree with the plural adjective.
Децата са малки.
Децата са малко.
Деца is plural, so the adjective is the plural малки, not the neuter singular малко.

Common mistakes

Keeping a singular adjective with a plural noun
нова столове
нови столове
A plural noun takes the single plural adjective ending -и → нови.
Using the neuter singular with plural neuter nouns
Децата са малко.
Децата са малки.
Деца is plural, so the adjective is малки, not the singular малко.

A1Agreement

The Counting Form (бройна форма): два стола

Бройна форма — два стола

Bulgarian has a special 'counting form' for masculine nouns. After a number (or after колко 'how many'), a masculine NON-person noun does NOT take its normal plural — it takes the counting form, which ends in -а or -я. So 'a chair' is стол, the plural is столове, but 'two chairs' is два стола, not *два столове. Likewise: три молива ('three pencils'), пет учебника ('five textbooks'), колко града ('how many cities'). The counting form is the old dual ending and it is used however high the number goes: десет молива, сто стола. This form exists ONLY for masculine non-person nouns. Feminine and neuter nouns simply use their ordinary plural after numbers (две книги, три села), and masculine persons follow a different rule (двама мъже).

Key rule

After a number or колко, a masculine non-person noun takes the counting form in -а/-я (два стола, три молива), never its ordinary plural (*два столове).

Examples

Имам два стола.
Имам два столове.
After a number a masculine non-person noun takes the counting form стола, not the plural столове.
Купих три молива.
Купих три моливи.
Молив is masculine non-person, so after три it takes the counting form молива, not the plural моливи.
Имам пет учебника.
Имам пет учебници.
The counting form of учебник is учебника; the velar does not soften, so учебници is wrong here.

Common mistakes

Using the ordinary plural after a number
два столове
два стола
After a number a masculine non-person noun must take the counting form стола.
Softening the velar in the counting form
пет учебница
пет учебника
The counting form keeps the hard stem: учебника, not учебница.

A1Agreement

Counting Persons: двама/трима + Men's Plural

Броене на лица — двама, трима

When you count male (or mixed male/female) people, Bulgarian uses a special set of 'men's numerals' and the ordinary plural — NOT the counting form. So 'two men' is двама мъже, not *два мъжа; 'three students' is трима студенти, not *три студента; 'four teachers' is четирима учители. The men's numerals are двама, трима, четирима, петима, шестима, седмина, осмина… and they are used only for groups that include men/boys (persons). This is the opposite of objects: for masculine NON-person nouns you use the counting form (два стола), but for masculine PERSONS you use the men's numeral plus the normal plural (двама мъже). This person/non-person split is one of the most important — and most tested — rules in Bulgarian.

Key rule

Count male or mixed-gender persons with the men's numerals двама/трима/четирима… plus the ordinary plural (двама мъже, трима студенти), never the counting form (*два мъжа).

Examples

В стаята има двама мъже.
В стаята има два мъжа.
Мъж is a person, so it takes the men's numeral двама + the plural мъже, not the counting form.
Трима студенти чакат отвън.
Три студента чакат отвън.
Студент is a person, so use трима + the plural студенти, not the counting form студента.
Четирима учители влязоха.
Четири учителя влязоха.
Учител is a person and takes четирима + the plural учители.

Common mistakes

Using the counting form for persons
два мъжа
двама мъже
Persons take the men's numeral двама + the plural мъже, not the counting form.
Plain cardinal + plural for male persons
три студенти
трима студенти
Male/mixed persons need the men's numeral трима, not the plain три.

A1Agreement

Subject–Verb Agreement (Person & Number)

Съгласуване на подлог и сказуемо

In Bulgarian the verb changes its ending to match the subject in person (I / you / he…) and number (one / many). Because the ending already shows who is acting, the subject pronoun is usually dropped: Чета книга means 'I am reading a book' — the -а ending says 'I'. You add the pronoun (аз, ти, той…) only for emphasis or contrast. The endings differ by conjugation, but the persons are always: 1sg (аз), 2sg (ти), 3sg (той/тя/то), 1pl (ние), 2pl/polite (вие), 3pl (те). For example with чета: чета, четеш, чете, четем, четете, четат. The verb must always agree with its real subject: a plural subject takes a plural verb (Децата четат), a singular subject a singular verb (Детето чете).

Key rule

The verb always agrees with its subject in person and number, and the subject pronoun is usually dropped because the ending already shows who is acting.

Examples

Чета книга.
Чете книга.
The 1st-person singular ending is -а (чета); чете is 3rd person 'he/she reads'.
Ние четем заедно.
Ние чета заедно.
Ние is 1st plural and takes четем; чета is 1st singular.
Те четат вестник.
Те чете вестник.
Те is 3rd plural and takes четат; чете is 3rd singular.

Common mistakes

Wrong person ending
Аз чете книга.
Аз чета книга.
The 1st-person singular form is чета; чете is 3rd person.
Singular verb with a plural subject
Децата играе.
Децата играят.
Деца is plural, so the verb must be the 3rd-plural играят.

A1Clitics

Clitics sit next to the verb (NOT 2nd position)

Кратките форми стоят до глагола

Bulgarian has a family of small, unstressed words called clitics: the short pronouns ме, те, го, я, ги (objects), ми, ти, му, ѝ, им (recipients), the reflexive се and си, and the short forms of съм (съм, си, е, сме, сте, са). Unlike some other Slavic languages, these words do NOT go in a fixed second position of the sentence — in Bulgarian they cluster right next to the verb. They usually come just before the verb (Виждам го, Казвам му), but after не they still hug the verb (Не го виждам). A clitic can never carry its own stress and can never start a sentence: you cannot say *Го виждам. Learn to keep these little words glued to the verb.

Key rule

Bulgarian clitics (ме, го, ми, му, се, съм…) cluster right next to the verb — never in a fixed second position and never at the start of a sentence.

Examples

Виждам го.
Го виждам.
The clitic го cannot start a sentence; it sits next to the verb виждам.
Иван ме познава.
Иван познава ме.
The clitic ме stands directly before the finite verb, not after it, in a neutral declarative clause.
Казвам му истината.
Истината казвам му.
The clitic му belongs next to the verb казвам, not floating after the object.

Common mistakes

Starting a sentence with a clitic
Го виждам всеки ден.
Виждам го всеки ден.
A clitic is unstressed and cannot open a clause; if the verb is first, the clitic follows it.
Putting the object clitic after the verb in a neutral clause
Иван познава ме добре.
Иван ме познава добре.
In a neutral declarative clause the object clitic stands directly before the finite verb.

A1Clitics

The reflexive clitic се / си

Кратка възвратна форма — се, си

Many Bulgarian verbs carry a little reflexive word: се (accusative reflexive) or си (dative reflexive). With се the action turns back on the subject or the verb simply needs it as part of its meaning: Той се мие ('He washes himself'), казвам се ('my name is'), радвам се ('I am glad'). With си the subject does something for/to themselves: Купувам си кафе ('I buy myself a coffee'), Мия си ръцете ('I wash my hands'). Like all clitics, се and си stand next to the verb and never start a sentence: you say Той се мие, not *Се той мие. After не they still hug the verb: Не се мия. This tag is about WHERE се/си go; which verbs need се is taught separately.

Key rule

The reflexive clitic се (and dative си) sits next to the verb, never starts a sentence, and stays before the verb after не (Той се мие; Не се радвам).

Examples

Той се мие всяка сутрин.
Той мие се всяка сутрин.
The reflexive се stands before the finite verb in a neutral clause, not after it.
Казвам се Мария.
Се казвам Мария.
A clitic cannot open the sentence; here the verb казвам comes first and се follows it.
Купувам си кафе.
Купувам кафе си.
The dative reflexive си clusters next to the verb, not after the object.

Common mistakes

Putting се after the verb
Той мие се всяка сутрин.
Той се мие всяка сутрин.
In a neutral clause the reflexive clitic stands before the finite verb.
Starting a sentence with се
Се казвам Иван.
Казвам се Иван.
A clitic cannot open a clause; when the verb is first, се follows it.

A1Clitics

The accusative object clitic (го, я, ги)

Кратко винително местоимение — го, я, ги

When you have already mentioned the direct object, you replace it with a short pronoun instead of repeating the noun. These are the accusative clitics: ме ('me'), те ('you'), го ('him/it' for masculine), я ('her/it' for feminine), го ('it' for neuter), ни ('us'), ви ('you' plural), ги ('them'). So instead of repeating книгата you say Чета я ('I read it'). They stand next to the verb and never start a sentence: Виждам го ('I see him'), Той ме познава ('He knows me'). After не they stay before the verb: Не го виждам. Choose the form by the gender/number of the noun it replaces: вестник → го, книга → я, деца → ги.

Key rule

Replace a known direct object with the verb-adjacent clitic го (masc.), я (fem.), го (neut.) or ги (plural): Чета книгата → Чета я.

Examples

Виждам го всеки ден.
Виждам него всеки ден.
Without contrast the short clitic го is used; него is the stressed form kept for emphasis.
Чета книгата. → Чета я.
Чета книгата. → Чета го.
Книга is feminine, so the replacing clitic is я, not the masculine го.
Иван ме познава добре.
Иван познава ме добре.
In a neutral clause the accusative clitic ме stands before the finite verb.

Common mistakes

Using the long form by default
Виждам него всеки ден.
Виждам го всеки ден.
When the object is simply given (no contrast), Bulgarian uses the short clitic го, not the stressed него.
Wrong gender of the clitic
Чета книгата. → Чета го.
Чета я.
Книга is feminine; the replacing accusative clitic is я, not the masculine го.

A1Clitics

The dative object clitic (ми, му, ѝ, им)

Кратко дателно местоимение — ми, му

When you give or say something TO someone, the recipient is marked with a short dative pronoun: ми ('to me'), ти ('to you'), му ('to him/it'), ѝ ('to her'), ни ('to us'), ви ('to you' plural), им ('to them'). These are clitics, so they stand next to the verb: Казвам му истината ('I tell him the truth'), Дай ми книгата ('Give me the book'). They never start a sentence: you cannot say *Му казвам; when the verb is first the clitic follows it — Казвам му. After не they stay before the verb: Не ти казвам. With an imperative the clitic follows the verb: Дай ми! The form ѝ ('to her') is written with a grave accent to tell it apart from и ('and').

Key rule

The dative clitic ми/ти/му/ѝ/ни/ви/им marks the recipient and sits next to the verb (Казвам му истината; Дай ми!), never starting a sentence.

Examples

Казвам му истината.
Казвам истината му.
The dative clitic му clusters next to the verb, not after the direct object.
Дай ми книгата!
Ми дай книгата!
A clitic cannot open a clause; after the imperative дай the clitic follows it: дай ми.
Тя ни помага всеки ден.
Тя помага ни всеки ден.
In a neutral clause the dative clitic ни stands before the finite verb.

Common mistakes

Placing the dative clitic after the direct object
Казвам истината му.
Казвам му истината.
The dative clitic clusters next to the verb; the direct object follows the whole cluster.
Starting a sentence with the dative clitic
Му казвам всичко.
Казвам му всичко.
A clitic cannot open a clause; when the verb is first, the dative clitic follows it.

A1Clitics

The question particle ли — placement

Въпросителната частица ли

To turn a statement into a yes/no question, Bulgarian adds the little particle ли right after the word you are asking about. If you ask about the action, ли follows the verb: Работиш ли? ('Do you work?'). If you ask 'is it X (and not something else)', ли follows that word: Иван ли е? ('Is it Ivan?'), Утре ли заминаваш? ('Are you leaving tomorrow?'). ли is a clitic: it is unstressed, leans on the word before it, and can never start a sentence. With a verb + object clitics, ли usually comes after the verb group: Виждаш ли го? ('Do you see him?'). The answer is Да ('yes') or Не ('no').

Key rule

ли is an enclitic yes/no particle placed right after the questioned word — after the verb for a neutral question (Работиш ли?), after a focused word for contrast (Иван ли е?).

Examples

Работиш ли днес?
Ли работиш днес?
ли is a clitic and cannot open the clause; it follows the questioned verb работиш.
Иван ли е тук?
Иван е ли тук?
To ask 'is it Ivan', ли attaches right after the focused word Иван, before the verb.
Виждаш ли го?
Виждаш го ли?
In a verb + object-clitic group, ли follows the verb and precedes the object clitic: виждаш ли го.

Common mistakes

Starting the question with ли
Ли идваш утре?
Идваш ли утре?
ли is an enclitic and cannot open a clause; it follows the questioned word.
Putting ли after the object clitic
Виждаш го ли?
Виждаш ли го?
In a verb + object-clitic group ли follows the verb and precedes the object clitic.

A1Clitics

Basic clitic cluster order (не/се/му/го/съм)

Ред на кратките форми — основи

When several little clitic words meet around one verb, they line up in a fixed order. A first, simple version of the rule: не comes first, then the reflexive се/си, then the dative clitic (ми, му, ѝ…), then the accusative clitic (ме, го, я, ги), and the съм-forms come at the end. So you say Не му го дадох ('I didn't give it to him'): не + dative му + accusative го + verb. You cannot reshuffle them: *Не го му дадох is wrong. Together the whole chain hugs the verb and never starts a sentence. At this level you mostly need: не before everything, dative before accusative (Дай ми го), and съм last (Видял съм го).

Key rule

Clitics line up in a fixed order around the verb: не · се/си · dative · accusative · съм (Не му го дадох), and the whole chain stays next to the verb.

Examples

Не му го дадох.
Не го му дадох.
The dative му precedes the accusative го; не leads the whole cluster.
Дай ми го!
Дай го ми!
Dative ми comes before accusative го; the cluster follows the clause-initial imperative.
Той ми я даде вчера.
Той я ми даде вчера.
Dative ми precedes accusative я in the fixed cluster order.

Common mistakes

Accusative before dative
Не го му дадох.
Не му го дадох.
In the cluster the dative clitic always precedes the accusative: му before го.
Reversed clitics in an imperative
Дай го ми!
Дай ми го!
Dative ми comes before accusative го even when the cluster follows the verb.

A1Determiners

Definiteness in Bulgarian — postposed clitic article

Определеност — членуване (увод)

Bulgarian has no separate word for 'the'. Instead it glues a short ending onto the end of the noun. A bare noun like книга means 'a book / book in general', while книгата (with -та stuck on) means 'the book' — the specific one we already know about. This ending is called the определителен член (definite article), and the process of adding it is членуване. The ending you use depends on the gender of the noun: feminine takes -та, neuter -то, masculine -ът/-ят or -а/-я, and plurals -те or -та. So unlike English 'the' or Spanish 'el', the Bulgarian article is not a word in front — it is a piece that becomes part of the noun itself. This is the single most important idea in this whole topic.

Key rule

Bulgarian marks 'the' with a clitic ending glued onto the END of the noun (книга → книгата), not with a separate word in front.

Examples

Имам книга.
Имам та книга.
An indefinite noun is bare; there is no separate article word like *та before the noun.
Книгата е на масата.
Та книга е на масата.
'The book' is книгата, with the article -та glued to the end, not a word in front.
Това е вода. Водата е студена.
Това е вода. То вода е студена.
First the bare noun вода, then the definite водата; you cannot put a separate article in front.

Common mistakes

Placing a separate article word before the noun
то дете спи
детето спи
Bulgarian has no preposed article; 'the' is the ending -то glued onto the noun, giving детето.
Leaving the noun bare when a specific, known thing is meant
Дай ми сол.
Дай ми солта.
When you mean the specific salt on the table, the noun must be definite: солта.

A1Determiners

Feminine definite article -та (жената)

Определителен член за женски род — -та

For feminine nouns, the word for 'the' is the ending -та, glued onto the end of the noun. Most feminine nouns end in -а or -я, and you simply add -та: жена → жената ('the woman'), книга → книгата ('the book'), маса → масата ('the table'), стая → стаята ('the room'). There is only one feminine ending — -та — and it never changes form for different feminine nouns. A few feminine nouns end in a consonant (like нощ 'night', есен 'autumn'); they also take -та: нощта, есента. So whenever the noun is feminine, the definite form is noun + -та. The stress usually stays where it was in the bare noun.

Key rule

Every feminine noun forms 'the' by adding the invariant ending -та to its end (жена → жената, нощ → нощта).

Examples

Жената е учителка.
Женато е учителка.
The feminine article is -та, not -то; жена → жената.
Книгата е на масата.
Книгата е на масо.
Both feminine nouns take -та; маса → масата, never *масо.
Стаята е чиста.
Стаята е чисто.
стая is feminine, so the article is -та: стаята; the adjective чиста also agrees as feminine.

Common mistakes

Using the neuter -то on a feminine noun
масото
масата
маса is feminine, so the article is -та, not the neuter -то.
Dropping the noun's final vowel before -та
книгта
книгата
The ending -та is added AFTER the noun's vowel; книга keeps its -а, giving книгата.

A1Determiners

Neuter definite article -то (детето)

Определителен член за среден род — -то

For neuter nouns, 'the' is the ending -то, glued onto the end of the noun. Neuter nouns usually end in -о or -е: село → селото ('the village'), дете → детето ('the child'), море → морето ('the sea'), куче → кучето ('the dog'). You just add -то after the noun's final vowel. There is only one neuter ending — -то — and it is the same for every neuter noun, in every position in the sentence. It does not change for subject or object, and it has no long/short variants like the masculine article does. So whenever the noun is neuter, the definite form is simply noun + -то.

Key rule

Every neuter noun forms 'the' by adding the invariant ending -то to its end (дете → детето, село → селото).

Examples

Детето спи.
Детата спи.
The neuter article is -то, not -та; дете → детето.
Морето е синьо.
Морето е синя.
море is neuter, so it takes -то (морето) and the neuter adjective синьо, not feminine синя.
Селото е малко.
Селоът е малко.
Neuter село takes -то; the masculine -ът would be wrong.

Common mistakes

Using the feminine -та on a neuter noun
детета
детето
дете is neuter, so the article is -то, not the feminine -та.
Using the masculine -ът on a neuter noun
селоът
селото
Neuter nouns never take -ът; the only neuter article is -то.

A1Determiners

Masculine definite article -ът/-ят (forms only)

Определителен член за мъжки род — форми

Masculine nouns are the trickiest. Most masculine nouns end in a consonant, and to make them definite you add -ът: град → градът ('the city'), стол → столът ('the chair'), мъж → мъжът ('the man'). But some masculine nouns take -ят instead: this happens with nouns ending in -й (which loses the й): край → краят, чай → чаят; and with a fixed group of nouns ending in -тел and -ар (and a few others) that are traditionally 'soft': учител → учителят, цар → царят, ден → денят. So the rule of thumb is: -ът for normal hard consonant endings, -ят for -й nouns and the soft -тел/-ар group. Here we only learn these forms; the choice between long and short comes next.

Key rule

Masculine nouns add -ът by default (градът, столът) but take -ят for -й nouns (краят) and the soft -тел/-ар group (учителят, царят).

Examples

Градът е голям.
Градът е голяма.
град is masculine, takes -ът (градът), and the adjective stays masculine голям.
Столът е счупен.
Столото е счупен.
Masculine стол takes -ът (столът); the neuter -то is wrong.
Учителят е строг.
Учителът е строг.
Nouns in -тел take the soft article -ят: учителят, not *учителът.

Common mistakes

Using -ят on a normal hard masculine noun
градят
градът
град is a hard consonant noun, so it takes -ът: градът.
Using -ът on a soft -тел noun
учителът
учителят
Nouns in -тел belong to the soft group and take -ят: учителят.

A1Determiners

Masculine full -ът/-ят vs short -а/-я — the two forms

Пълен и кратък член — двете форми

Masculine nouns actually have TWO written definite forms: a long (full) form and a short one. The full form is -ът/-ят (столът, учителят); the short form is -а/-я (стола, учителя). They are pronounced almost the same in everyday speech — many people say something like 'stola' for both — but in writing Bulgarian keeps them apart. At A1 you only need to recognise that both forms exist and belong to the same word: столът and стола are both 'the chair'; учителят and учителя are both 'the teacher'. The rule for WHEN to use the full form and when the short one (it depends on the noun's role as subject or object) comes later. For now: learn the pair.

Key rule

Each definite masculine noun has two written forms — the full -ът/-ят (столът) and the short -а/-я (стола) — both meaning the same 'the noun'.

Examples

Столът е тук. Виждам стола.
Столът е тук. Виждам столът.
Both столът and стола are 'the chair'; the subject takes the full столът and the object the short стола.
Градът е красив. Обичам града.
Градът е красив. Обичам градът.
градът (subject, full) and града (object, short) are the same word in two written forms.
Учителят влезе. Питам учителя.
Учителят влезе. Питам учителят.
учителят (full, subject) and учителя (short, object) are the long and short forms of the same noun.

Common mistakes

Treating the full and short forms as different words
столът и стола са различни столове
столът и стола са един и същ стол
столът and стола are two written forms of the SAME definite noun, not two different chairs.
Using the full form where the short is expected (object)
Виждам столът.
Виждам стола.
As a direct object the masculine noun takes the short form: стола.

A1Determiners

Plural definite article -те/-та (книгите)

Определителен член за множествено число — -те

In the plural, all genders share almost the same article. Most plurals end in -и or -е, and they add -те: книги → книгите ('the books'), столове → столовете ('the chairs'), мъже → мъжете ('the men'), жени → жените ('the women'). There is one exception: neuter plurals that end in -а take -та instead: села → селата ('the villages'), деца → децата ('the children'). So the rule is simple: plurals in -и/-е take -те, and neuter plurals in -а take -та. Unlike the singular masculine, the plural article has no long/short forms and no gender differences — once a noun is plural, it is just -те (or -та for neuter -а plurals).

Key rule

Plurals in -и/-е add -те (книгите, столовете), while neuter plurals in -а add -та (селата, децата).

Examples

Книгите са на масата.
Книгита са на масата.
The plural книги ends in -и and takes -те: книгите, not -та.
Столовете са нови.
Столоветата са нови.
The plural столове takes -те directly: столовете.
Жените работят тук.
Женитето работят тук.
The plural жени takes -те: жените.

Common mistakes

Using singular -та on a plural in -и
книгита
книгите
The plural книги takes -те: книгите; -та here would look like a feminine singular.
Using -те on a neuter -а plural
селате
селата
Neuter plurals in -а take -та: села → селата.

A1Determiners

The article attaches to the FIRST NP element

Членът се поставя на първата дума в групата

When an adjective stands in front of a noun, the definite article does NOT go on the noun — it jumps onto the adjective, the first word of the phrase. So 'the new book' is новата книга, not *нова книгата. The adjective новата carries the -та, and the noun книга stays bare. The same happens with every gender: голямото дете ('the big child'), новият стол ('the new chair'), хубавите къщи ('the nice houses'). The rule is: the article attaches once, to the first major word of the noun phrase. If there is an adjective, it lands on the adjective; if the noun stands alone, it lands on the noun. There is always exactly one article in the phrase.

Key rule

When an adjective precedes the noun, the definite article attaches to the adjective (новата книга), never to the noun (*нова книгата) and never twice.

Examples

новата книга
нова книгата
With an adjective present, the article -та goes on the first word новата, and the noun книга stays bare.
голямото дете
голямо детето
The neuter article -то attaches to the adjective голямото, not to the noun дете.
новият стол
новата книгата
The article attaches once to the first element (новият); it never doubles onto both words.

Common mistakes

Leaving the article on the noun when an adjective precedes
нова книгата
новата книга
The article must move to the first element, so it goes on новата and the noun stays bare.
Doubling the article on both adjective and noun
новата книгата
новата книга
There is exactly one article per phrase; it sits only on the first word, новата.

A1Determiners

The emerging indefinite article един (a/an)

Неопределителен член — един

Bulgarian does not really have a word for 'a/an' the way English does — usually a bare noun is enough (Имам куче = 'I have a dog'). But the number 'one' — един (masculine), една (feminine), едно (neuter) — is increasingly used like the English 'a/an' to introduce a new, specific person or thing into a story: Видях един човек ('I saw a man'), Имам една идея ('I have an idea'). It agrees in gender with the noun, just like the number 'one'. Be careful: you only use един when you want to point to a particular new thing. For general statements you still leave the noun bare: Обичам кучета ('I love dogs'), not *Обичам едни кучета. So един is optional and means 'a certain (one)'.

Key rule

Use един/една/едно (agreeing in gender) to introduce a new, specific thing — but leave the noun bare for general statements and after съм (Той е лекар, not *един лекар).

Examples

Видях един човек на улицата.
Видях една човек на улицата.
човек is masculine, so the indefinite marker is един, not the feminine една.
Имам една идея.
Имам един идея.
идея is feminine, so the form is една, agreeing in gender.
Имаше едно момче в двора.
Имаше един момче в двора.
момче is neuter, so the form is едно, not the masculine един.

Common mistakes

Wrong gender of един
една човек
един човек
човек is masculine, so the indefinite marker must be един, not една.
Using един in a generic statement
Едни кучета са верни.
Кучетата са верни.
General statements about a whole class use a bare or definite plural, not един/едни.

A1Orthography

The Cyrillic Alphabet (30 Letters)

Кирилицата — българската азбука

Bulgarian is written in the Cyrillic alphabet, which has 30 letters. It was first used in this region over a thousand years ago, so Bulgarians are very proud of it. The good news for learners is that the spelling is almost phonetic: most letters always make the same sound, and you usually read a word exactly as it is written. Some letters look like Latin letters and sound the same (А, Е, К, М, О, Т), some look like Latin letters but sound different (В = /v/, Н = /n/, Р = /r/, С = /s/, У = /u/, Х = /h/), and some are completely new (Б, Г, Д, Ж, З, Й, Л, П, Ф, Ц, Ч, Ш, Щ, Ъ, Ь, Ю, Я). Learning to read all 30 letters is the very first step.

Key rule

Bulgarian uses 30 Cyrillic letters and is almost phonetic: read each word as it is written, letter by letter.

Examples

България
Bulgaria
Bulgarian must be written in Cyrillic, not Latin letters.
книга
книjа
There is no Latin 'j' in Bulgarian; the consonant /j/ is written with the Cyrillic letter й.
поща
пошта
The single letter щ already spells /ʃt/, so you do not add a separate т.

Common mistakes

Writing Bulgarian words in Latin letters
Dobar den
Добър ден
Bulgarian is written only in Cyrillic; transliteration into Latin is not standard spelling.
Mixing visually similar Latin and Cyrillic letters
Mаma
Мама
The capital must be Cyrillic М, not Latin M, even though they look identical on screen.

A1Orthography

The Vowel ъ (er golyam) — a Full Vowel

Гласната ъ (ер голям)

The letter ъ, called 'ер голям', is a real VOWEL in Bulgarian — the sound /ɤ/, a bit like the 'u' in the English word 'about' or 'sun'. This surprises learners who know Russian, where ъ is a silent 'hard sign'. In Bulgarian ъ is pronounced and very common: път (road), сън (sleep), ъгъл (corner), and even the country's name, България. You can stress it like any other vowel: пъ́тят. The only thing you must remember is that in the modern norm ъ is never written at the end of a word (the old final ъ was abolished in 1945). So you write мъж (man), not *мъжъ.

Key rule

ъ ('ер голям') is a pronounced vowel /ɤ/ (път, сън, България) and is never written at the end of a word.

Examples

път
пт
The vowel ъ must be written and pronounced; without it the word has no vowel.
България
Болгария
The country's name has ъ, not о; Болгария is the Russian form, not the Bulgarian one.
мъж
мъжъ
Modern Bulgarian does not write a final ъ; the old silent ending was abolished in 1945.

Common mistakes

Treating ъ as a silent hard sign and dropping it (Russian habit)
обркан
объркан
In Bulgarian ъ is always a pronounced vowel /ɤ/, never a silent separator as in Russian; it must be written, so объркан cannot lose its ъ.
Writing о instead of ъ under Russian influence
Болгария
България
The Bulgarian vowel here is ъ, not о; replacing it gives the foreign Russian form.

A1Orthography

Capitalisation (Lowercase Days, Months, Nationalities)

Главни и малки букви — основи

Bulgarian uses capital letters in fewer places than English. You capitalise the first letter of a sentence and proper names — people (Иван, Мария), cities and countries (София, България), rivers, etc. But you do NOT capitalise the days of the week (понеделник, вторник), the months (януари, март), the names of languages (български, английски), or nationality adjectives (българин is a noun and is capitalised? — no: it is lowercase). All of these are written with a small letter, even at the start of nothing special. The formal address Вие ('you', polite) is capitalised out of respect. This is one of the easiest spelling rules once you remember: 'days, months, languages, nationalities → small letter.'

Key rule

Capitalise sentence-initial words and proper names only; days, months, languages, and nationalities are lowercase, while the polite Вие is capitalised.

Examples

В понеделник имам изпит.
В Понеделник имам изпит.
Days of the week are written with a lowercase letter in Bulgarian.
Роден съм през март.
Роден съм през Март.
Month names are lowercase.
Аз говоря български и английски.
Аз говоря Български и Английски.
Language names are lowercase, unlike in English.

Common mistakes

Capitalising days of the week (English transfer)
В Сряда нямам работа.
В сряда нямам работа.
Bulgarian writes weekday names with a lowercase letter.
Capitalising month names
Имам рожден ден през Май.
Имам рожден ден през май.
Months are common nouns in Bulgarian and stay lowercase.

A1Register

ти vs Вие (Informal vs Formal/Plural Address)

Учтива форма — ти и Вие

Bulgarian has two ways to say 'you'. Use ти for one person you know well — a friend, a child, a family member. Use Вие for someone you address politely (a stranger, an older person, your boss, a shop assistant) AND for more than one person. The big point is the verb: with ти you use the 2nd-person SINGULAR form (ти си, ти работиш), but with the polite Вие you use the 2nd-person PLURAL form (Вие сте, Вие работите) — even when you are talking to just one person. As a sign of respect, the polite 'you' to a single person is written with a capital В: Вие, Вас, Ви, Вашият. Choosing ти too early can sound rude, so with strangers and older people, start with Вие.

Key rule

Use ти + 2nd-singular for one familiar person; use the capitalised polite Вие + 2nd-PLURAL verb for a stranger, an elder, or several people.

Examples

Ти си добър приятел.
Ти сте добър приятел.
With ти the verb is 2nd-singular си, not the plural сте.
Вие сте много любезен, господине.
Вие си много любезен, господине.
Polite Вие takes the 2nd-plural verb сте, never the singular си.
Заповядайте, как сте Вие?
Заповядайте, как си Вие?
With the polite Вие the verb must be plural сте; си belongs to ти.

Common mistakes

Singular verb with polite Вие
Вие имаш ли време?
Вие имате ли време?
Polite Вие always takes the 2nd-plural verb form имате.
Plural verb with informal ти
Ти сте моят приятел.
Ти си моят приятел.
ти takes the 2nd-singular form си, not the plural сте.

A1Register

Formal Address: господин / госпожо / госпожице

Обръщения — господин, госпожо

When you address someone politely in Bulgarian, you use a title. господин means 'Mr / Sir', госпожа means 'Mrs / Madam', and госпожица means 'Miss' (a younger, unmarried woman). When you speak TO the person, госпожа and госпожица change their ending: you say госпожо! and госпожице! (this old vocative ending is still alive in greetings). You can use the title alone — Добър ден, госпожо! — or with a surname — господин Петров. Titles go BEFORE the name. They are written with a small letter even before a surname (господин Иванов). Pair them with polite Вие and a polite greeting: Здравейте, Добър ден, Заповядайте.

Key rule

Address people politely with господин / госпожа / госпожица (lowercase, before the name); in direct address say госпожо! and госпожице!, and pair them with Вие and a polite greeting.

Examples

Добър ден, госпожо!
Добър ден, госпожа!
In direct address the form is the vocative госпожо, not the base госпожа.
Извинете, господине, колко е часът?
Извинете, господин, колко е часът?
Calling out to a man without a name uses господине; bare господин needs a following name.
Заповядайте, госпожице.
Заповядайте, госпожица.
Addressing a young woman directly uses the vocative госпожице.

Common mistakes

Using the base form госпожа instead of the vocative in direct address
Извинете, госпожа!
Извинете, госпожо!
When you call out to or greet a woman, the vocative госпожо is required.
Using господине before a surname
господине Петров
господин Петров
Before a name the title keeps its base form господин; the vocative господине is for address without a name.

A1Numbers dates time

Cardinal Numbers 0–100 (нула, едно … сто)

Бройни числа 0–100

Bulgarian counts 0–100 like this: нула (0), едно (1), две (2), три (3), четири (4), пет (5), шест (6), седем (7), осем (8), девет (9), десет (10). The teens are made with -найсет: единайсет (11), дванайсет (12), тринайсет (13)… петнайсет (15)… деветнайсет (19). The tens are двайсет (20), трийсет (30), четирийсет (40), петдесет (50), шейсет (60), седемдесет (70), осемдесет (80), деветдесет (90), сто (100). For 21, 22… you join with и: двайсет и едно (21), трийсет и пет (35). The number 'one' changes by gender: един мъж, една жена, едно дете. The number 'two' has два (masculine) and две (feminine/neuter): два стола, две книги.

Key rule

Count 0–100 with teens in -найсет and compounds joined by и (двайсет и пет); only едно/две inflect for gender (един/една/едно, два/две).

Examples

Имам две сестри.
Имам два сестри.
Сестра is feminine, so 'two' is две, not the masculine два.
Купих един билет.
Купих едно билет.
Билет is masculine, so 'one' is един, agreeing with the noun.
На масата има два стола.
На масата има два столове.
After a number, the masculine non-person noun стол takes the counting form стола, not the plural столове.

Common mistakes

Wrong gender of 'one' or 'two'
две молива
два молива
Молив is masculine, so 'two' is два, not the feminine/neuter две.
Using the plural instead of the counting form after a number
три молива → три моливи
три молива
After a number, masculine non-person nouns take the counting form -а/-я, not the ordinary plural.

A1Numbers dates time

Days & Months (lowercase; понеделник, януари)

Дни и месеци (с малка буква)

The seven days of the week are: понеделник (Monday), вторник (Tuesday), сряда (Wednesday), четвъртък (Thursday), петък (Friday), събота (Saturday), неделя (Sunday). The twelve months are: януари, февруари, март, април, май, юни, юли, август, септември, октомври, ноември, декември. All of these are written with a SMALL letter, even though English capitalises them. To say 'on a day' you use в (or във before в-): в понеделник = 'on Monday', в събота = 'on Saturday'. To say 'in a month' you use през: през януари = 'in January', през май = 'in May'. Remember the trap: неделя is Sunday, NOT 'week' — 'week' is седмица.

Key rule

Write all days and months lowercase; use в (във) + day for 'on' and през + month for 'in', and remember неделя = Sunday, not week (= седмица).

Examples

В понеделник имам работа.
В Понеделник имам работа.
Day names are lowercase in Bulgarian.
Рожденият ми ден е през май.
Рожденият ми ден е през Май.
Month names are lowercase.
В неделя почивам.
В неделя почивам цяла седмица.
неделя means Sunday, so it cannot also mean 'a whole week'; 'a whole week' is цяла седмица.

Common mistakes

Capitalising days or months (English transfer)
Имам изпит в Сряда.
Имам изпит в сряда.
Days and months are written lowercase in Bulgarian.
Confusing неделя (Sunday) with седмица (week)
Бях на море една неделя.
Бях на море една седмица.
неделя is Sunday; the duration 'a week' is седмица.

A1Vocabulary usage

Everyday Lexis: седмица = week, неделя = Sunday

Основна лексика — седмица и неделя

This tag fixes a few very common A1 words that trip learners up. The most important pair: седмица means 'week' (seven days), and неделя means 'Sunday' (one day) — NOT 'week'. So 'next week' is следващата седмица, but 'on Sunday' is в неделя. A few more everyday words to learn correctly: влак (train), хляб (bread), мляко (milk), час (hour / o'clock), and вода (water). These are high-frequency words you will use from day one, and getting them right — especially седмица vs неделя — instantly makes you sound more accurate. Speakers of other Slavic languages often mix these up, so pay extra attention.

Key rule

седмица = week, неделя = Sunday (only); learn core words like влак, хляб, мляко, вода, час with their correct meaning and gender.

Examples

Миналата седмица бях на село.
Миналата неделя бях на село цяла седмица.
седмица is the seven-day week; неделя is Sunday and cannot mean 'week'.
В неделя ходим на църква.
В седмица ходим на църква.
'On Sunday' is в неделя; в седмица ('in a week') does not mean a weekday.
Купих хляб и мляко.
Купих хляб и млеко.
'Milk' in standard Bulgarian is мляко, not the Russian/dialectal млеко.

Common mistakes

Using неделя to mean 'week'
Бях болен цяла неделя.
Бях болен цяла седмица.
неделя is Sunday only; the seven-day period is седмица.
Using воз for 'train' (Serbian/Russian transfer)
Чакам воза.
Чакам влака.
The Bulgarian word for train is влак.

A1Prepositions

на for Possession (книгата на Иван)

Предлогът на — притежание

Bulgarian has no possessive case endings on nouns. To say whose something is, you use the preposition на ('of'). The thing comes first, then на, then the owner: книгата на Иван ('Ivan's book', literally 'the book of Ivan'). This is exactly the job the genitive does in languages like German or Russian, but Bulgarian does it with a little word instead of a special noun ending. The owned thing usually carries the definite article: колата на брат ми ('my brother's car'). Word order is fixed — owned thing, then на, then owner. You can also answer the question чий? / чия? / чие? ('whose?') with this structure.

Key rule

Express possession with [owned thing] + на + [possessor]; never inflect the noun and never reverse the order.

Examples

Това е книгата на Иван.
Това е книгата Иван.
Possession needs на between the owned thing and the owner; you cannot just put the two nouns side by side.
Колата на брат ми е нова.
Колата от брат ми е нова.
Possession ('my brother's') uses на, not от; от would mean 'from my brother'.
Това са играчките на децата.
Това са на децата играчките.
The order is fixed: owned thing first (играчките), then на, then owner — not the reverse.

Common mistakes

Dropping на between two nouns
Това е стаята Анна.
Това е стаята на Анна.
Bulgarian has no genitive ending, so the possessive link must be the preposition на.
Using от instead of на for possession
Това е колата от баща ми.
Това е колата на баща ми.
от means 'from / made of'; possession ('my father's') is на.

A1Prepositions

на for the Indirect Object (давам на Иван)

Предлогът на — непряко допълнение

When you give, say, send or show something to someone, that 'someone' is the indirect object. Bulgarian marks it with на ('to / for'): давам книгата на Иван ('I give the book to Ivan'), казвам на майка си ('I tell my mother'). This is the job the dative case does in other languages, but Bulgarian uses на instead of an ending. The pattern is: verb + (thing) + на + person. With many verbs (give, say, send, show, write) the recipient is introduced by на. Note that this is the same little word на you use for possession — but here it means 'to' a person, not 'of'.

Key rule

Mark the recipient of an action with на + person: давам книгата на Иван, казвам на майка си.

Examples

Давам книгата на Иван.
Давам книгата Иван.
The recipient of 'give' is introduced by на ('to Ivan').
Казвам на майка си всичко.
Казвам майка си всичко.
'Tell my mother' needs на before the recipient.
Пиша писмо на приятеля си.
Пиша писмо за приятеля си.
With 'write to a person' the recipient is на; за would change the meaning to 'for/about'.

Common mistakes

Omitting на before the recipient
Казвам Иван истината.
Казвам на Иван истината.
The indirect object (recipient) must be introduced by на.
Using за for a human recipient
Давам подаръка за майка ми.
Давам подаръка на майка ми.
'Give to a person' is на; за would mean 'a present intended for her', not the act of giving to her.

A1Prepositions

в / във (in, into) — Location and Motion

Предлозите в и във — място и посока

в means 'in' or 'into'. It covers both being inside a place (живея в София = 'I live in Sofia') and moving into one (влизам в стаята = 'I go into the room'). Bulgarian uses the same в for both, with no special ending. There is one spelling rule: before words starting with в- or ф- you write във to make it easier to pronounce — във влака ('on the train'), във Франция ('in France'). Everywhere else it is just в. Use в for towns, countries, rooms, buildings and enclosed spaces.

Key rule

Use в for 'in/into'; switch to във only before words starting with в- or ф- (във влака, във Франция).

Examples

Живея в София.
Живея на София.
A town/city you live in takes в ('in'), not на.
Книгата е в чантата.
Книгата е на чантата.
Inside the bag is в; на чантата would mean 'on top of the bag'.
Влизам в стаята.
Влизам на стаята.
Movement into an enclosed space uses в.

Common mistakes

Using на for being inside a place
Живея на София.
Живея в София.
Enclosed places and settlements take в ('in'); на is for surfaces and 'at'.
Keeping в before в-/ф- words
Пътувам в влака.
Пътувам във влака.
Before words beginning with в or ф the euphonic form във is required.

A1Prepositions

с / със (with) — Accompaniment and Means

Предлозите с и със — заедност и средство

с means 'with'. It covers being together with someone (отивам с приятел = 'I go with a friend') and doing something by means of a tool (пиша с молив = 'I write with a pencil'). Bulgarian uses the same с for both 'together with' and 'by means of'. There is one spelling rule: before words starting with с- or з- you write със to make it easier to say — със сестра ('with a sister'), със захар ('with sugar'). Everywhere else it is just с. The noun after с never changes its ending.

Key rule

Use с for 'with' (both 'together with' and 'by means of'); switch to със only before words starting with с- or з- (със сестра, със захар).

Examples

Отивам на кино с приятел.
Отивам на кино за приятел.
Accompaniment ('with a friend') is с; за would mean 'for a friend'.
Пиша с молив.
Пиша на молив.
The instrument/means ('with a pencil') is с, not на.
Пия кафе със захар.
Пия кафе с захар.
Before захар (starts with з-) the form is със.

Common mistakes

Keeping с before с-/з- words
Кафе с захар, моля.
Кафе със захар, моля.
Before words beginning with с or з the form must be със.
Overusing със everywhere
Отивам със приятел.
Отивам с приятел.
със is only before с-/з- words; приятел starts with п-, so plain с.

A1Prepositions

за (for, to, about)

Предлогът за — цел и предназначение

за is a very common little word with three everyday uses. First, 'for / intended for': Това е за тебе ('This is for you'), подарък за майка ми ('a present for my mother'). Second, 'to / heading for' a destination: заминавам за София ('I leave for Sofia'), билет за влака ('a ticket for the train'). Third, 'about': говорим за филма ('we talk about the film'), мисля за теб ('I think about you'). One small word covers 'for', 'to (a destination)' and 'about'. The noun after за never changes its ending.

Key rule

Use за for purpose/beneficiary ('for'), departure destination ('for/to'), and topic ('about'); the noun stays unchanged.

Examples

Това е подарък за тебе.
Това е подарък на тебе.
Intended beneficiary ('for you') is за; на тебе would mark you as the recipient of an act of giving.
Заминавам за София утре.
Заминавам в София утре.
Departure towards a destination uses за; в would just state being inside Sofia.
Говорим за новия филм.
Говорим на новия филм.
The topic of speaking ('about the film') is за, not на.

Common mistakes

Using на for an intended beneficiary
Това е подарък на тебе.
Това е подарък за тебе.
'Intended for someone' is за; на marks the recipient of an action like giving.
Using в/до for a departure destination
Тръгвам в работа.
Тръгвам за работа.
Setting off towards a place uses за ('for'); в states being inside.

A1Prepositions

от (from, out of, since)

Предлогът от — източник и начало

от means 'from' or 'out of'. Use it for where you come from (идвам от София = 'I come from Sofia'), where something starts (от понеделник = 'from Monday'), and what something is made of (направено от дърво = 'made of wood'). It is the opposite of до/към (towards) and contrasts with в (in). от also appears in the very common phrase 'I am from…': Аз съм от България. The noun after от keeps its plain form. от is one of the first prepositions you need to introduce yourself.

Key rule

Use от for source, origin, starting point in time, and material ('from / out of / since / made of'); the noun stays unchanged.

Examples

Аз съм от България.
Аз съм за България.
Origin ('I am from Bulgaria') is от; за would wrongly mean 'for/towards Bulgaria'.
Идвам от работа.
Идвам в работа.
Coming from a place uses от; в would mean 'into work'.
Магазинът е отворен от девет часа.
Магазинът е отворен в девет часа.
A starting time ('open from nine') uses от; в девет часа would mean 'at nine' (a point).

Common mistakes

Using за/в for origin
Аз съм за София.
Аз съм от София.
'I am from a place' is от; за means 'for/towards'.
Using в for 'coming from'
Идвам в магазина.
Идвам от магазина.
Source of motion is от; в would mean going into the shop.

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A1Prepositions

до / към (to, up to, towards)

Предлозите до и към — посока

до and към both point somewhere, but differently. до means 'up to / as far as / next to' — it marks a limit or reaching a point: до магазина ('as far as the shop'), до пет часа ('until five o'clock'), седя до Иван ('I sit next to Ivan'). към means 'towards / in the direction of' — the general direction without reaching it: тръгвам към центъра ('I set off towards the centre'), гледам към морето ('I look towards the sea'). So до = up to a point or beside something; към = towards a direction. The noun after either one keeps its plain form.

Key rule

Use до for a reached limit or 'next to' (до магазина, до пет часа), and към for general direction 'towards' (към центъра).

Examples

Вървя до магазина.
Вървя към магазина и влизам вътре.
до магазина means reaching the shop as a limit; към would mean only heading in that direction without arriving.
Тръгвам към центъра.
Тръгвам до центъра.
Setting off in a direction uses към; до would imply you have reached the centre.
Седя до Иван в час.
Седя към Иван в час.
'Next to Ivan' is до; към would mean 'towards Ivan'.

Common mistakes

Using до for general direction
Тръгвам до центъра.
Тръгвам към центъра.
Heading in a direction is към; до implies reaching the endpoint.
Using към for a time limit
Работя към пет часа.
Работя до пет часа.
'Until five' (a limit) is до; към пет means 'around five'.

A1Prepositions

на (on, at) — Surface and Place

Предлогът на — място (върху, при)

Besides possession and recipients, на also means 'on' a surface and 'at' a place: книгата е на масата ('the book is on the table'), на работа съм ('I'm at work'), чакам на гарата ('I wait at the station'). The key contrast is between на (on a surface / at an open place) and в (inside something): на масата ('on the table') vs в чантата ('in the bag'); на гарата ('at the station') vs в магазина ('in the shop'). Many open or activity places take на: на работа, на училище, на море, на кино. The noun after на keeps its plain form, usually with the article.

Key rule

Use на for 'on a surface' and 'at an (open/event) place' (на масата, на работа, на гарата), contrasting with в for 'inside'.

Examples

Книгата е на масата.
Книгата е в масата.
On a surface is на; в масата would mean literally inside the table.
На работа съм до пет часа.
В работа съм до пет часа.
The fixed phrase for 'at work' is на работа, not в работа.
Чакам те на гарата.
Чакам те в гарата.
Waiting at the station (an open place) is на гарата; в гарата would oddly mean inside the building's interior.

Common mistakes

Using в for a surface
Чашата е в масата.
Чашата е на масата.
On a surface is на; в means inside.
Using в for fixed на-places
В работа съм.
На работа съм.
'At work' is the set phrase на работа, not в работа.

A1Pronouns

Personal pronouns — long subject forms (аз, ти, той)

Лични местоимения — пълни (подложни) форми

Bulgarian subject pronouns are аз (I), ти (you, singular informal), той/тя/то (he/she/it), ние (we), вие (you, plural or polite Вие), те (they). The verb ending already shows the person, so the pronoun is usually dropped: 'Чета книга' already means 'I am reading a book'. You add the pronoun mainly for emphasis or contrast — АЗ чета, а ти спиш ('I am reading, while you are sleeping'). When you do use it, it stands before the verb. This 'pro-drop' is the normal, natural pattern; using the pronoun in every sentence sounds heavy and unnatural.

Key rule

Subject pronouns (аз, ти, той/тя/то, ние, вие, те) are usually dropped because the verb ending shows the person; add them before the verb only for emphasis or contrast.

Examples

Чета книга.
Аз чета аз книга.
The verb ending -а already marks 'I', so the pronoun is dropped; repeating аз is wrong.
АЗ работя, а ти почиваш.
Работя, а почиваш.
For an explicit contrast between two people you keep both pronouns to make the opposition clear.
Той е лекар, а тя е учителка.
Той е лекар, а той е учителка.
A woman takes тя, not той; Bulgarian distinguishes he/she/it in the third singular.

Common mistakes

Using a subject pronoun in every sentence
Аз обичам, аз чета и аз пиша.
Обичам, чета и пиша.
Bulgarian is pro-drop; the verb endings already show 'I', so repeating аз sounds unnatural.
Confusing той and тя by sex
Майка ми каза, че той ще дойде.
Майка ми каза, че тя ще дойде.
A female referent (mother) takes тя; той is masculine 'he'.

A1Pronouns

Object pronouns — long vs short (мене/ме)

Лични местоимения — пълни и кратки форми

When a pronoun is the object of a verb, Bulgarian has two forms: a long, stressed one and a short, unstressed one. The short forms ме, те, го/я/го, ни, ви, ги lean on the verb and are the everyday choice: 'Виждам го' ('I see him'). The long forms мене, тебе, него/нея/него, нас, вас, тях are stressed and are used for emphasis or contrast and after prepositions: 'Виждам НЕГО' ('It is him I see'); 'за мене' ('for me'). Very often you use both together for emphasis: 'Мене ме боли главата' ('MY head hurts'). After a preposition only the long form is allowed.

Key rule

Use the short clitic (ме, те, го/я, ни, ви, ги) next to the verb by default; use the stressed long form (мене, тебе, него…) for emphasis, contrast, and obligatorily after a preposition.

Examples

Виждам го всеки ден.
Виждам него всеки ден.
Neutral 'I see him' uses the short clitic го; the long него would force an emphasis that is not intended.
Това е за мене.
Това е за ме.
After a preposition only the long form is allowed: за мене, never the clitic ме.
Тебе търсят, не мене.
Те търсят, не ме.
Contrast between two people requires the stressed long forms тебе and мене.

Common mistakes

Using a short clitic after a preposition
Подаръкът е за го.
Подаръкът е за него.
Prepositions take the long stressed form; за него, never за го.
Long form where a neutral clitic is needed
Обичам нея.
Обичам я.
Without special emphasis 'I love her' uses the short clitic я, not the stressed нея.

A1Pronouns

Dative short pronouns (ми, ти, му, ѝ)

Кратки дателни местоимения — ми, ти, му

To say 'to me, to you, to him' as a recipient, Bulgarian uses short pronouns: ми (to me), ти (to you), му (to him/it), ѝ (to her), ни (to us), ви (to you, plural), им (to them). They answer the question 'to whom?' and appear with verbs of giving, saying, showing: 'Дай ми книгата' ('Give me the book'), 'Казвам му истината' ('I tell him the truth'). They replace the longer phrase 'на + person' (на мене → ми, на Иван → му). Note the feminine ѝ ('to her') is written with a grave accent so it is not confused with the conjunction и ('and').

Key rule

The short dative clitics ми, ти, му, ѝ, ни, ви, им mark the recipient ('to/for whom') and stand for на + person; write feminine ѝ with its grave accent.

Examples

Дай ми чаша вода.
Дай мене чаша вода.
The neutral recipient is the short clitic ми; the long на мене would be emphatic.
Казах му истината.
Казах го истината.
The recipient 'to him' is the dative му; го is the accusative (direct object).
Подарих ѝ цветя.
Подарих и цветя.
'To her' is ѝ with a grave accent; plain и means 'and' and changes the meaning.

Common mistakes

Using an accusative clitic for the recipient
Казвам го лъжа.
Казвам му лъжа.
The recipient ('to him') is the dative му; го is the direct object.
Writing ѝ without the accent
Дадох и книгата.
Дадох ѝ книгата.
Feminine 'to her' is ѝ with a grave accent; и without it is the conjunction 'and'.

A1Pronouns

Possessive pronouns — long forms (мой, твой, наш)

Притежателни местоимения — пълни форми

To say 'my, your, his, our…' with stress, Bulgarian uses full possessive pronouns: мой (my), твой (your, singular), негов (his), неин (her), наш (our), ваш (your, plural), техен (their). They agree in gender and number with the thing owned, not with the owner: моят син (my son), моята книга (my book), моето дете (my child), моите приятели (my friends). When the noun is definite, the article attaches to the possessive: моят, моята, моето, моите. These long forms are emphatic; the everyday, unstressed way is the short clitic (синът ми), a separate tag.

Key rule

Long possessives (мой, твой, негов, неин, наш, ваш, техен) agree in gender and number with the thing owned and take the definite article when the noun is definite (моят син, моята книга).

Examples

Това е моята книга.
Това е моят книга.
Книга is feminine, so the possessive is моята, agreeing with the noun, not the owner.
Моят брат живее в Бургас.
Моето брат живее в Бургас.
Брат is masculine, so the definite possessive is моят, not the neuter моето.
Нейната кола е нова.
Неговата кола е нова.
A female owner takes неин (here нейната); неговата would mean 'his'.

Common mistakes

Agreeing the possessive with the owner instead of the thing owned
Мария има моят книга.
Мария има моята книга.
Possessives agree with the possessed noun; книга is feminine, so моята.
Confusing негов (his) and неин (her)
Това е сестра ми; неговата стая е горе.
Това е сестра ми; нейната стая е горе.
A female owner takes неин/нейната; негов means 'his'.

A1Pronouns

Possessive short (clitic) forms (книгата ми)

Кратки притежателни местоимения — ми, ти, му

The everyday way to say 'my, your, his…' is a short clitic placed right after a definite noun: книгата ми (my book), братът ми (my brother), колата му (his car). The clitics are ми, ти, му, ѝ, ни, ви, им — the same little words as the dative pronouns. The noun must be definite (it carries the article), and the clitic follows it: майката ми, not майка ми needs care — but with close kinship singular nouns the article is often dropped: майка ми, баща ми. This short form is far more common than the long мой/твой and sounds natural in normal speech.

Key rule

Short possessive clitics (ми, ти, му, ѝ, ни, ви, им) follow a definite noun (книгата ми); singular close-kinship nouns drop the article (майка ми, брат ми).

Examples

Книгата ми е на масата.
Книга ми е на масата.
A non-kinship noun must be definite before the clitic: книгата ми, not bare книга ми.
Майка ми готви вкусно.
Майката ми готви вкусно.
Singular close-kinship terms drop the article: майка ми, not майката ми.
Колата му е паркирана отвън.
Колата го е паркирана отвън.
Possession uses the dative-shaped clitic му; го is the accusative and cannot mark possession.

Common mistakes

Omitting the article on a non-kinship noun
Стая ми е малка.
Стаята ми е малка.
Ordinary nouns must be definite before the possessive clitic: стаята ми.
Keeping the article on a singular kinship term
Бащата ми работи много.
Баща ми работи много.
Singular close-kinship nouns drop the article with the clitic: баща ми.

A1Pronouns

Demonstratives този / онзи (this / that)

Показателни местоимения — този, онзи

To point at things, Bulgarian uses този/тази/това for 'this' (near) and онзи/онази/онова for 'that' (far). They agree in gender and number with the noun: този стол (this chair, m.), тази маса (this table, f.), това дете (this child, n.), тези хора (these people, pl.). The far set is онзи/онази/онова/онези. The neuter това and онова are also used alone to mean 'this/that thing': Какво е това? ('What is this?'). The demonstrative comes before the noun and the noun stays unarticled: този стол, never този столът.

Key rule

Demonstratives този/тази/това/тези (near) and онзи/онази/онова/онези (far) agree in gender and number, precede the noun, and replace the definite article (този стол, not този столът).

Examples

Този стол е удобен.
Този столът е удобен.
A demonstrative makes the phrase definite by itself, so the noun keeps no article: този стол.
Тази книга е интересна.
Този книга е интересна.
Книга is feminine, so the demonstrative is тази, agreeing with the noun.
Какво е това?
Какво е този?
For an unidentified 'thing' you use the neuter pronoun това; този expects a masculine noun.

Common mistakes

Adding the article after a demonstrative
този моливът
този молив
A demonstrative already makes the phrase definite, so the noun takes no article.
Wrong gender on the demonstrative
този маса
тази маса
Маса is feminine and needs the feminine тази.

A1Pronouns

Interrogatives кой (who) & какво (what)

Въпросителни местоимения — кой, какво

To ask 'who?' about people Bulgarian uses кой, and to ask 'what?' about things it uses какво: Кой е там? ('Who is there?'), Какво искаш? ('What do you want?'). Кой also means 'which one' of a known set and then agrees in gender and number: кой стол (which chair, m.), коя книга (which book, f.), кое дете (which child, n.), кои хора (which people, pl.). Какво is invariable. The question word goes at the front of the question. There is no special question word order beyond fronting the кой/какво.

Key rule

Use кой for people ('who/which one'), agreeing in gender/number when it selects from a set (кой/коя/кое/кои), and the invariable какво for things ('what'); the question word goes first.

Examples

Кой е този човек?
Какво е този човек?
A person is asked about with кой ('who'); какво asks about things.
Какво искаш за обяд?
Кой искаш за обяд?
A thing (lunch) is asked about with какво; кой is for people.
Коя книга четеш?
Кой книга четеш?
Книга is feminine, so 'which' agrees as коя.

Common mistakes

Using какво for a person
Какво е директорът?
Кой е директорът?
People are asked about with кой ('who'); какво is for things.
Using кой for a thing
Кой ядеш?
Какво ядеш?
An object/thing takes какво; кой asks about people.

A1Pronouns

Interrogatives какъв (what kind) & чий (whose)

Въпросителни местоимения — какъв, чий

To ask about quality or type ('what kind of') Bulgarian uses какъв, and to ask about ownership ('whose') it uses чий. Both agree in gender and number with the noun: какъв/каква/какво/какви and чий/чия/чие/чии. Какъв човек е той? ('What kind of person is he?'); Каква кола имаш? ('What kind of car do you have?'); Чий е този стол? ('Whose is this chair?'); Чия е тази чанта? ('Whose is this bag?'). Note: какъв ('what kind') is different from какво ('what thing'), and чий ('whose') is different from кой ('who').

Key rule

Use какъв/каква/какво/какви for 'what kind of' and чий/чия/чие/чии for 'whose', agreeing in gender and number with the noun.

Examples

Какъв филм гледаш?
Каква филм гледаш?
Филм is masculine, so 'what kind of' is какъв.
Каква кола имаш?
Какъв кола имаш?
Кола is feminine, so 'what kind of' agrees as каква.
Чий е този молив?
Чия е този молив?
Молив is masculine, so 'whose' is чий.

Common mistakes

No gender agreement on какъв
Каква проблем е това?
Какъв проблем е това?
Проблем is masculine, so 'what kind of' is какъв.
No gender agreement on чий
Чий е тази къща?
Чия е тази къща?
Къща is feminine, so 'whose' is чия.

A1Pronouns

Reflexive pronoun се / себе си — introduction

Възвратно местоимение — се, себе си

When the subject does something to itself, Bulgarian uses the reflexive се: мия се (I wash myself), обличам се (I get dressed). One single се works for all persons — аз се мия, ти се миеш, той се мие. Се is an unstressed clitic that stands next to the verb and cannot start a sentence. For emphasis or after a preposition you use the stressed себе си: Той мисли само за себе си ('He thinks only about himself'). There is also a dative reflexive си (купувам си = I buy myself something). Many verbs simply come with се as part of their meaning (усмихвам се = to smile).

Key rule

Use the invariable clitic се (next to the verb) for 'oneself' in all persons, and the stressed себе си for emphasis and after prepositions (за себе си).

Examples

Сутрин се мия със студена вода.
Сутрин мия се със студена вода.
The clitic се is verb-adjacent and precedes the verb here; it cannot follow it at the clause start.
Той мисли само за себе си.
Той мисли само за се.
After a preposition only the stressed себе си is possible; the clitic се cannot follow за.
Децата се обличат сами.
Децата облича се сами.
The reflexive se goes with the plural verb обличат; обличам is singular and misplaced.

Common mistakes

Using the clitic се after a preposition
Грижа се за се.
Грижа се за себе си.
After a preposition only the stressed себе си is allowed.
Putting се at the start of the clause
Се обличам бързо.
Обличам се бързо.
Се is a clitic and cannot open a sentence; it must lean on a preceding word.

A1Syntax

Basic Word Order (SVO)

Словоред — основен (подлог–сказуемо–допълнение)

The neutral word order in Bulgarian is Subject–Verb–Object, just like English: Иван чете книга ('Ivan reads a book'). The subject comes first, then the verb, then the object. Because the verb endings already show who is doing the action, the subject pronoun is usually dropped: Чета книга means 'I read a book' with no separate word for 'I'. Bulgarian word order is flexible — you can move a word to the front to stress it — but for a plain, neutral A1 sentence, keep Subject–Verb–Object. Nouns do not change their endings to show their role: there are no cases, so the position of the word (and small helper words) tells you who does what.

Key rule

The neutral Bulgarian sentence is Subject–Verb–Object (Иван чете книга); the subject pronoun is usually dropped because the verb ending already shows the person.

Examples

Иван чете книга.
Иван книга чете.
Neutral order is Subject–Verb–Object; placing the object before the verb here sounds marked/unnatural at A1.
Мария обича музика.
Обича Мария музика.
In a neutral statement the subject Мария comes before the verb, not after it.
Децата играят навън.
Играят децата навън.
Subject–Verb is the neutral order; verb-first is an emphatic or narrative variant, not the A1 default.

Common mistakes

Object placed before the verb in a neutral sentence
Иван книга чете.
Иван чете книга.
The neutral Bulgarian order is Subject–Verb–Object; object-before-verb is an emphatic order, not the default.
Adding the subject pronoun unnecessarily
Аз чета книга всеки ден.
Чета книга всеки ден.
The verb ending already marks the subject, so the pronoun is normally dropped unless it is emphatic.

A1Syntax

Existentials има / няма (there is / there isn't)

Безличните има и няма — наличие

To say 'there is' or 'there are', Bulgarian uses one fixed word: има. Има хляб means 'There is bread', and Има хора means 'There are people' — има never changes for singular or plural. To say 'there isn't / there aren't', use няма: Няма мляко ('There is no milk'). Both are impersonal: there is no subject like 'it'. Be careful — these look like the verb имам ('I have'), but here они are used without a personal subject. The thing that exists comes after the word: Има проблем, Няма време. To ask, just add ли: Има ли хляб? ('Is there bread?').

Key rule

Use invariant има for 'there is/are' and няма for 'there isn't/aren't'; they take no subject and never change for number — unlike the personal verb имам ('I have').

Examples

Има хляб на масата.
Имат хляб на масата.
Existential има is invariant; it never takes the plural ending -ат even with the place phrase.
Няма мляко в хладилника.
Не има мляко в хладилника.
The negative existential is the single word няма, never *не има.
В стаята има много хора.
В стаята имат много хора.
Even with a plural noun (хора) the existential stays има — it does not agree in number.

Common mistakes

Conjugating the existential for plural
Имат много хора тук.
Има много хора тук.
Existential има is invariant and never agrees in number; имат is the personal 'they have'.
Forming the negative as *не има
Не има хляб.
Няма хляб.
The negative existential is the single suppletive word няма, never не + има.

A1Syntax

Sentence Negation with не

Отрицание в изречението — не

To make a sentence negative, put не directly before the verb: Разбирам ('I understand') → Не разбирам ('I don't understand'). не is a separate little word, written apart from the verb, and it always comes immediately before it. With the verb 'to be' (съм) you get не съм: Не съм гладен ('I'm not hungry'). The verbs имам ('I have') and има ('there is') have their own negative words — нямам and няма — so you say Нямам пари, not *не имам пари. To negate the future, you do not use *не ще; instead the future negative is няма да. Apart from these special cases, simple negation is just не + verb.

Key rule

Negate a clause by placing the separate word не immediately before the verb (Не разбирам); for съм it is не съм, while имам/има/ще negate suppletively as нямам/няма/няма да.

Examples

Не разбирам въпроса.
Неразбирам въпроса.
не is a separate word and is never written joined to the verb.
Той не работи днес.
Той работи не днес.
не must stand immediately before the verb, not floating after it.
Не съм гладен.
Съм не гладен.
With съм the negation is не съм; не comes before the copula.

Common mistakes

Writing не joined to the verb
Незная отговора.
Не зная отговора.
не is always a separate word; it is never spelled together with the verb.
Using *не имам instead of нямам
Не имам време.
Нямам време.
имам has the suppletive negative нямам; *не имам does not exist.

A1Syntax

Yes/No Questions with ли

Въпроси с да/не — частицата ли

A yes/no question in Bulgarian is made by adding the little word ли after the word you are asking about. To turn Работиш ('You work') into a question, say Работиш ли? ('Do you work?'). ли normally follows the verb: Идваш ли? ('Are you coming?'), Има ли хляб? ('Is there bread?'). If you want to question a specific word, put ли right after it: Иван ли е? ('Is it Ivan?'), Утре ли заминаваш? ('Is it tomorrow you leave?'). ли is never the first word and never changes form. In everyday speech you can also just raise your tone, but with ли the question is clear and standard.

Key rule

Form a yes/no question by placing the enclitic ли right after the word in focus — by default after the verb (Работиш ли?); ли is never first and never changes form.

Examples

Работиш ли днес?
Ли работиш днес?
ли is an enclitic and can never stand first; it follows the word in focus (the verb).
Има ли хляб?
Има хляб ли?
With the existential, ли follows има directly, not the whole phrase, in the neutral question.
Иван ли е това?
Е ли Иван това?
To question 'Ivan' specifically, front Иван and put ли right after it.

Common mistakes

Placing ли at the start of the question
Ли идваш с нас?
Идваш ли с нас?
ли is an enclitic and can never open a clause; it follows the focused word.
Separating ли from the verb it questions
Работиш днес ли?
Работиш ли днес?
In a neutral question ли attaches directly after the verb, not at the end of the sentence.

A1Syntax

Wh-Questions (Кой? Какво? Къде? Кога? Защо?)

Въпроси с въпросителни думи

To ask 'who, what, where, when, why, how', Bulgarian uses a question word at the very start of the sentence: Кой? ('Who?'), Какво? ('What?'), Къде? ('Where?'), Кога? ('When?'), Защо? ('Why?'), Как? ('How?'). The question word comes first, then the verb: Къде си? ('Where are you?'), Какво правиш? ('What are you doing?'), Защо плачеш? ('Why are you crying?'). You do NOT add ли with a wh-word — the question word alone makes it a question. As with statements, the subject pronoun is usually dropped because the verb shows who you mean. These question words are the key to asking for real information at A1.

Key rule

Put the question word (кой, какво, къде, кога, защо, как) first, then the verb (Какво правиш?); never add ли to a wh-question.

Examples

Къде живееш?
Живееш къде?
The question word къде must stand first, before the verb.
Какво правиш?
Какво правиш ли?
A wh-question never takes ли; the question word alone makes it a question.
Защо плачеш?
Ти защо плачеш?
The subject pronoun is dropped; защо opens the question directly.

Common mistakes

Adding ли to a wh-question
Къде ли си?
Къде си?
A wh-word already forms the question; ли is only for yes/no questions and here adds an unwanted 'I wonder' nuance.
Putting the question word after the verb
Правиш какво?
Какво правиш?
The interrogative must stand first, at the beginning of the question.

A1Syntax

Negative Words Need не (никой не знае)

Отрицателни думи — никой не, нищо не

Bulgarian uses a 'double negative', and it is correct. When you use a negative word like никой ('nobody'), нищо ('nothing'), никъде ('nowhere') or никога ('never'), you must ALSO put не on the verb: Никой не идва ('Nobody is coming'), Нищо не разбирам ('I understand nothing'), Никога не пуша ('I never smoke'). In English this would be a mistake, but in Bulgarian it is the rule: the negative word and не go together. If you drop не, the sentence is wrong: *Никой идва is incorrect. Think of it as the whole clause being negative, marked in two places — on the word and on the verb.

Key rule

A negative word (никой, нищо, никъде, никога) obligatorily requires не on the verb too — the double negative is correct, not an error (Никой не знае).

Examples

Никой не идва днес.
Никой идва днес.
The negative word никой requires не on the verb; without it the sentence is ungrammatical.
Нищо не разбирам.
Нищо разбирам.
нищо must be accompanied by не on the verb (obligatory negative concord).
Никога не закъснявам.
Никога закъснявам.
никога ('never') still needs не before the verb.

Common mistakes

Dropping не after a negative word
Никой знае отговора.
Никой не знае отговора.
Negative concord is obligatory: никой forces не on the verb.
Using a positive indefinite where a negative is needed
Не виждам някой.
Не виждам никого.
Under negation the negative word is required (никого), not the positive някой.

A1Connectors

Basic Connectors: и, а, но, или, защото

Прости съюзи — и, а, но, или, защото

Small joining words link your ideas. и means 'and' (Чета и пиша — 'I read and write'). а means 'and/but' for a gentle contrast between two things (Той учи, а аз спя — 'He studies, while I sleep'). но means 'but' for a stronger contrast (Уморен съм, но работя — 'I'm tired, but I work'). или means 'or' (чай или кафе — 'tea or coffee'). защото means 'because' and gives a reason (Спя, защото съм уморен — 'I sleep because I'm tired'). With these five words you can already join short sentences into longer, more natural ones. A comma usually comes before а, но and защото.

Key rule

Use и ('and'), а (contrastive 'and/while'), но ('but'), или ('or') and защото ('because') to join clauses; put a comma before а, но and защото.

Examples

Чета и пиша всеки ден.
Чета, и пиша всеки ден.
и ('and') simply links and normally takes no comma before it.
Аз пия чай, а той пие кафе.
Аз пия чай а той пие кафе.
Contrastive а always has a comma before it.
Уморен съм, но работя.
Уморен съм но работя.
но ('but') is preceded by a comma.

Common mistakes

Putting a comma before plain и
Чета, и пиша.
Чета и пиша.
и ('and') joining two predicates takes no comma before it in a simple sentence.
Omitting the comma before а
Аз спя а той учи.
Аз спя, а той учи.
Contrastive а is always preceded by a comma.

A1Verb tenses

Present of съм (to be) — am/is/are

Глаголът съм — сегашно време

The verb съм means 'to be'. It is the most common verb in Bulgarian and you need it from your very first sentence. Its present-tense forms are: аз съм, ти си, той/тя/то е, ние сме, вие сте, те са. You use it to link a subject to a description or a noun: Аз съм студент ('I am a student'), Тя е лекар ('She is a doctor'), Ние сме приятели ('We are friends'). The forms съм, си, е, сме, сте, са are clitics: they have no stress of their own and normally cannot stand at the very start of a sentence. In neutral sentences they usually come right after the first word, so subject pronouns are often dropped: Студент съм ('I'm a student').

Key rule

The copula съм has the present forms съм, си, е, сме, сте, са; they are unstressed clitics that normally sit after the first word (Аз съм студент) and can never start a sentence.

Examples

Аз съм студент.
Аз сам студент.
The 1st-singular form is съм, not сам; сам is the Russian/Serbian form and is wrong in Bulgarian.
Той е лекар.
Той съм лекар.
Той ('he') is 3rd singular and takes е, not the 1st-person съм.
Ние сме приятели.
Ние са приятели.
Ние ('we') is 1st plural and takes сме; са is the 3rd-plural 'they are'.

Common mistakes

Using the Russian/Serbian form сам
Аз сам учител.
Аз съм учител.
Bulgarian 1st-singular of съм is съм with the vowel ъ; сам is interference from another Slavic language.
Putting the clitic first in the clause
Съм студент.
Студент съм.
Съм is an unstressed clitic and cannot open a sentence; it follows the first stressed word.

A1Verb tenses

Present — first (e-)conjugation (чета, пиша)

Сегашно време — I спрежение (е-глаголи)

Bulgarian verbs fall into three present-tense conjugations. The first conjugation (e-verbs) has these endings: -а/-я, -еш, -е, -ем, -ете, -ат/-ят. For example чета ('I read'): чета, четеш, чете, четем, четете, четат. The 1st-singular ends in -а (or -я after a soft stem, as in пиша → пиша), and the 3rd-plural ends in -ат (or -ят). The marker of this class is the -е- you see in most forms: четеш, чете, четем, четете. Other common e-verbs are пиша ('I write'), мога ('I can'), ям ('I eat') and дойда ('I come'). You recognise this class by the -еш ending in the 'you' form.

Key rule

First-conjugation (e-)verbs take -а/-я, -еш, -е, -ем, -ете, -ат/-ят; the giveaway is the 2nd-singular -еш (четеш, пишеш).

Examples

Аз чета книга всеки ден.
Аз чета книгу всеки ден.
The 1st-singular is чета; книгу is a Russian case ending — Bulgarian nouns have no accusative ending, so it stays книга.
Ти пишеш писмо.
Ти пишиш писмо.
The 2nd-singular ending of an e-verb is -еш (пишеш), not -иш.
Той чете вестник.
Той чети вестник.
The 3rd-singular ends in -е (чете); -и belongs to the second (и-)conjugation.

Common mistakes

Using -иш instead of -еш in the 2nd singular
Ти четиш книга.
Ти четеш книга.
First-conjugation verbs take the thematic -е-, so the 'you' form is четеш, not четиш.
Using the Russian 1st-singular -у
Аз пишу домашно.
Аз пиша домашно.
The Bulgarian 1st-singular of an e-verb ends in -а/-я (пиша), never the Russian -у.

A1Verb tenses

Present — second (и-)conjugation (говоря, ходя)

Сегашно време — II спрежение (и-глаголи)

The second conjugation (и-verbs) has the endings -я/-а, -иш, -и, -им, -ите, -ят/-ат. For example говоря ('I speak'): говоря, говориш, говори, говорим, говорите, говорят. The 1st-singular ends in -я (or -а after ч/ж/ш/щ), and you recognise the class by the -иш ending in the 'you' form and the -и in the 'he/she' form. Other common и-verbs are ходя ('I go/walk'), мисля ('I think'), уча ('I learn/study') and виждам's relative видя ('I see'). One important spelling rule: after ч, ж, ш, щ the 1st-singular and 3rd-plural are written -а/-ат, never -я/-ят — so уча → уча, учат (not *учя, *учят).

Key rule

Second-conjugation (и-)verbs take -я/-а, -иш, -и, -им, -ите, -ят/-ат; the giveaway is the 2nd-singular -иш, and after ч/ж/ш/щ the soft endings are written -а/-ат (уча → учат).

Examples

Аз говоря български.
Аз говорам български.
The 1st-singular of говоря is говоря with -я, not -ам (that is the third conjugation).
Ти ходиш на работа.
Ти ходеш на работа.
Second-conjugation 2nd-singular takes -иш (ходиш); -еш belongs to the first conjugation.
Той мисли за теб.
Той мисле за теб.
The 3rd-singular of an и-verb ends in -и (мисли); -е is the first-conjugation ending.

Common mistakes

Using -еш instead of -иш in the 2nd singular
Ти говореш бавно.
Ти говориш бавно.
Second-conjugation verbs take the thematic -и-, so the 'you' form is говориш, not говореш.
Writing я after ч/ж/ш/щ
Аз учя усилено.
Аз уча усилено.
Bulgarian never writes я after ч, ж, ш, щ; the 1st-singular of уча is спелен with -а.

A1Verb tenses

Present — third (a-)conjugation (искам, гледам)

Сегашно време — III спрежение (а-глаголи)

The third conjugation (a-verbs) is the easiest and most regular class. Its endings are -ам, -аш, -а, -аме, -ате, -ат. For example искам ('I want'): искам, искаш, иска, искаме, искате, искат. You recognise the class instantly because every form keeps the -а-: искаш, иска, искаме. Many very common verbs belong here: гледам ('I watch/look'), имам ('I have'), казвам ('I say'), питам ('I ask') and знам ('I know'). Be careful: играя and работя are NOT а-verbs — играя is first-conjugation (играя, играеш, играе) and работя is second-conjugation (работя, работиш, работи). Most new and borrowed verbs join the а-conjugation, so it is the productive, regular pattern of modern Bulgarian.

Key rule

Third-conjugation (а-)verbs take the uniform endings -ам, -аш, -а, -аме, -ате, -ат, with the thematic -а- in every form (искам, искаш, иска…).

Examples

Аз искам кафе.
Аз искаю кафе.
The 1st-singular of an а-verb is искам; искаю is a Russian form and is wrong in Bulgarian.
Ти гледаш телевизия.
Ти гледеш телевизия.
Third-conjugation 2nd-singular keeps the -а- (гледаш); -еш belongs to the first conjugation.
Той иска вода.
Той искат вода.
The 3rd-singular ends in -а (иска); -ат is the 3rd-plural ending.

Common mistakes

Using -еш instead of -аш in the 2nd singular
Ти гледеш телевизия.
Ти гледаш телевизия.
Third-conjugation verbs keep the thematic -а-, so the 'you' form is гледаш, not гледеш.
Using the Russian 1st-singular -ю
Аз искаю чай.
Аз искам чай.
The Bulgarian 1st-singular of an а-verb ends in -ам (искам), never -ю.

A1Verb tenses

Present of имам / нямам (have / not have)

Глаголите имам и нямам

Имам means 'I have'. It is a regular third-conjugation (а-)verb: имам, имаш, има, имаме, имате, имат. The object comes directly after it, with no preposition: Имам брат ('I have a brother'), Имаме време ('We have time'). The negative is not formed with не — instead Bulgarian uses a completely separate verb, нямам ('I do not have'): нямам, нямаш, няма, нямаме, нямате, нямат. So you say Нямам време ('I have no time'), never *Не имам време. The 3rd-singular forms има and няма are also used to mean 'there is' and 'there isn't': Има хляб ('There is bread'), Няма хляб ('There is no bread').

Key rule

Имам ('have') is a regular а-verb; its negative is the separate verb нямам — never *не имам — and the bare 3rd-singular има/няма means 'there is / there isn't'.

Examples

Аз имам брат и сестра.
Аз имам брата и сестру.
The objects stay in their base form (брат, сестра); брата/сестру are Russian case endings and are wrong.
Нямам време днес.
Не имам време днес.
The negative of имам is the separate verb нямам; *не имам does not exist in Bulgarian.
Той има голяма къща.
Той имат голяма къща.
Той is singular and takes има; имат is the 3rd-plural form.

Common mistakes

Negating имам with не
Не имам пари.
Нямам пари.
Bulgarian negates 'have' with the separate verb нямам, never with не + имам.
Adding a case ending to the possessed noun
Имам брата.
Имам брат.
Bulgarian nouns have no accusative ending; the object stays in its base form (брат).

A1Verb tenses

Negation of the present with не

Отрицание в сегашно време — не

To make a present-tense verb negative, put не directly before it: работя → не работя ('I don't work'), зная → не зная ('I don't know'), чета → не чета ('I'm not reading'). The word не is written separately as its own word and carries the stress, so the verb after it loses its stress. With the verb съм, the negative is не съм, не си, не е, не сме, не сте, не са: Не съм уморен ('I'm not tired'). Note one important exception: the verb имам ('have') is NOT negated with не — it has its own negative verb нямам. For all other verbs, simply не + verb is correct.

Key rule

Negate a present-tense verb by placing the stressed particle не immediately before it (не работя, не е тук); the only exception is имам, whose negative is the separate verb нямам.

Examples

Аз не работя в неделя.
Аз неработя в неделя.
Не is a separate word and is never written joined to the verb.
Той не разбира български.
Той не разбирам български.
After не the verb still agrees with the subject: той → разбира, not the 1st-person разбирам.
Не съм уморен.
Не уморен съм.
With съм the negative is не съм, and не comes directly before the clitic.

Common mistakes

Joining не to the verb
Аз неработя днес.
Аз не работя днес.
Не is always a separate word; it is never attached to the verb.
Negating имам with не
Не имам време.
Нямам време.
Имам is negated by the separate verb нямам, not by не.

A1Verb tenses

Future with invariant ще + present (ще работя)

Бъдеще време — ще + сегашно време

The future tense in Bulgarian is wonderfully simple: take the particle ще and put it in front of the present-tense verb. The verb stays conjugated for the person; only ще is added and it never changes: ще работя ('I will work'), ще работиш ('you will work'), ще работят ('they will work'). So ще is invariant — it is the same word for every person — while the verb after it carries the personal ending. Examples: Утре ще пътувам ('Tomorrow I will travel'), Той ще дойде довечера ('He will come tonight'), Ние ще учим заедно ('We will study together'). Do not conjugate ще itself and do not use an infinitive — Bulgarian has no infinitive.

Key rule

Form the future with the invariant particle ще plus the finite present verb (ще работя, ще работиш); ще never conjugates and there is no infinitive.

Examples

Утре ще пътувам до Пловдив.
Утре ща пътувам до Пловдив.
The future particle is invariant ще; *ща (a conjugated form) does not exist in standard Bulgarian.
Той ще дойде довечера.
Той ще дойда довечера.
The verb still agrees with the subject: той → ще дойде, not the 1st-person дойда.
Ние ще учим заедно.
Ние ще учи заедно.
Ще does not stop the verb from agreeing: ние → ще учим.

Common mistakes

Conjugating the particle ще
Аз ща дойда.
Аз ще дойда.
Ще is invariant and is the same for every person; it never takes a personal ending.
Losing subject agreement on the verb
Ние ще учи.
Ние ще учим.
The verb after ще is a finite present and must agree with the subject (ние → учим).

A1Verb tenses

Negative future: няма да + present (няма да дойда)

Отрицателно бъдеще — няма да

To say what you will NOT do, you do not negate ще. Instead the future negative uses the fixed phrase няма да followed by the present-tense verb: няма да работя ('I will not work'), няма да дойда ('I won't come'), няма да забравя ('I won't forget'). The part няма да stays the same for all persons — it does not change — and only the verb after да agrees with the subject: Той няма да дойде ('He won't come'), Ние няма да закъснеем ('We won't be late'). A very common mistake is to say *не ще — this does not exist in everyday Bulgarian. The rule is simple: positive future = ще + present; negative future = няма да + present.

Key rule

Form the negative future with the invariant няма да + finite present verb (няма да дойда, той няма да дойде); never use *не ще, and няма да does not change for person.

Examples

Аз няма да работя утре.
Аз не ще работя утре.
The negative future is няма да + present; *не ще is not used in modern Bulgarian.
Той няма да дойде довечера.
Той няма да дойда довечера.
Only ще's slot is fixed; the verb still agrees: той → дойде, not the 1st-person дойда.
Ние няма да закъснеем.
Ние нямаме да закъснеем.
Няма да is invariant; do not conjugate няма to нямаме for 'we'.

Common mistakes

Using *не ще for the negative future
Не ще дойда утре.
Няма да дойда утре.
The standard negative future is няма да + present; *не ще is archaic and not used today.
Conjugating няма for the person
Ние нямаме да дойдем.
Ние няма да дойдем.
In the future-negative няма да is frozen; agreement is on the verb, not on няма.

A1Verb tenses

Present for habit & near future (Утре пътувам)

Сегашно време — употреба

Bulgarian has only one present tense, and it does a lot of work. There is no separate 'simple' and 'continuous' as in English — чета means both 'I read' and 'I am reading'. The present is used for: (1) what is happening now (Сега чета 'I'm reading now'); (2) habits and repeated actions (Всеки ден уча 'I study every day'); and (3) scheduled or near-future events, especially with a time word (Утре пътувам 'Tomorrow I'm travelling', Влакът тръгва в осем 'The train leaves at eight'). So you don't always need ще for the future — when a plan is fixed and there's a time expression, the plain present is natural. Context and the time word tell you which meaning is intended.

Key rule

The single Bulgarian present covers ongoing action, habits, and scheduled near-future events (Утре пътувам), so no 'continuous' form and not always ще are needed.

Examples

Сега чета интересна книга.
Сега съм четящ интересна книга.
'I am reading' is just the present чета; Bulgarian has no 'be + -ing' continuous form.
Всеки ден пия кафе сутрин.
Всеки ден ще пия кафе сутрин.
A regular habit uses the plain present; ще would wrongly turn a daily routine into a single future plan.
Утре пътувам за Варна.
Утре пътувах за Варна.
A planned near-future action uses the present (пътувам); the past пътувах contradicts 'tomorrow'.

Common mistakes

Inventing a continuous 'be + -ing' form
Аз съм четящ книга сега.
Аз чета книга сега.
Bulgarian has no continuous tense; the plain present covers 'I am reading'.
Using ще for a present habit
Всеки ден ще ставам в седем.
Всеки ден ставам в седем.
A repeated daily routine is the plain present; ще would mark a single future plan.

A1Verb usage

съм as copula + predicate (Аз съм лекар)

съм като свързващ глагол — именно сказуемо

The verb съм ('to be') links the subject to a word that describes it — a noun (Аз съм студент), an adjective (Тя е уморена) or a noun phrase (Той е добър лекар). This describing word is called the predicate. With a noun the predicate just names the role: Аз съм лекар ('I am a doctor'). With an adjective the predicate agrees with the subject in gender and number: Той е добър, Тя е добра, То е добро, Те са добри. The forms of съм are съм, си, е, сме, сте, са. In neutral sentences the predicate comes after съм, but because съм is a clitic it never opens the sentence: you say Лекар съм, not 'Съм лекар'.

Key rule

Use съм to link the subject to a predicate noun (Аз съм лекар) or adjective, where a predicate adjective agrees in gender and number (Тя е уморена, Те са уморени).

Examples

Аз съм лекар.
Аз лекар.
Bulgarian keeps the copula съм; the sentence cannot drop 'to be' the way Russian does.
Тя е добра учителка.
Тя е добър учителка.
With a feminine subject the predicate adjective must be feminine добра, not masculine добър.
Детето е малко.
Детето е малка.
Дете is neuter, so the predicate adjective takes the neuter ending -о: малко.

Common mistakes

Dropping the copula
Аз студент.
Аз съм студент.
Bulgarian always keeps съм in the present; only Russian and some languages omit 'to be'.
Predicate adjective not agreeing in gender
Тя е уморен.
Тя е уморена.
A predicate adjective agrees with the subject; a feminine subject needs the -а form.

A1Verb usage

Imperative — basic forms (чети! говорете!)

Повелително наклонение — основни форми

The imperative is the command form — you use it to tell someone to do something. In Bulgarian there is a singular command (to one person you address with ти) and a plural/polite command (to several people or to someone you address with Вие). For most verbs the singular ends in -и or -й and the plural adds -те: чети! / четете! ('read!'), пиши! / пишете! ('write!'), чакай! / чакайте! ('wait!'). Verbs whose stem ends in a vowel take -й/-йте (играй, играйте), and verbs whose stem ends in a consonant take -и/-ете (върви, вървете). You also use the imperative for polite requests, often softened with моля: Заповядайте! ('Here you are / Come in!'), Кажете, моля!

Key rule

Form the singular command in -и/-й and the plural (or polite Вие) command in -ете/-йте: чети!/четете!, чакай!/чакайте!

Examples

Чети по-високо, моля!
Четиш по-високо, моля!
The command is the imperative чети, not the present-tense четиш.
Чакайте ме тук!
Чакаете ме тук!
Vowel-final stems take -йте in the plural: чакайте, not 'чакаете'.
Говорете по-бавно!
Говорите по-бавно!
The plural imperative of говоря is говорете (-ете), while говорите is the present tense.

Common mistakes

Using the present tense as a command
Четеш това!
Чети това!
A command needs the imperative form чети, not the present четеш.
Wrong plural ending after a vowel stem
Чакаете!
Чакайте!
Vowel-final stems take -йте, so the plural is чакайте.

A1Verb usage

Negative command: недей(те) да + present

Отрицателна заповед — недей(те)

To tell someone NOT to do something, Bulgarian has two ways. The most common is недей (to one person) or недейте (to several / polite Вие) + да + the present-tense verb: Недей да плачеш! ('Don't cry!'), Недейте да бързате! ('Don't hurry!'). The verb after да agrees with the subject, just like in any да-construction. The second way puts не directly in front of the ordinary imperative: Не плачи!, Не бързайте! Both mean the same thing; недей да… often sounds a little softer and more caring. There is also a short colloquial pattern недей + a bare verb (Недей плака!), but the safe everyday choice is недей(те) да + present.

Key rule

Tell someone not to do something with недей (sg.) / недейте (pl.) + да + present, or with не + the ordinary imperative: Недей да плачеш! = Не плачи!

Examples

Недей да плачеш!
Не недей да плачеш!
недей is already negative; you do not add another не in front of it.
Недейте да бързате!
Недей да бързате!
Addressing several people (or polite Вие) needs the plural недейте.
Не пипай това!
Не пипаш това!
The second strategy uses не + the imperative пипай, not the present пипаш.

Common mistakes

Doubling the negation with недей
Не недей да идваш.
Недей да идваш.
недей is already a negative; a second не is wrong.
Singular недей to several people
Недей да бързате, деца!
Недейте да бързате, деца!
A plural addressee needs the plural form недейте.

A1Verb usage

The да-construction (no infinitive) — intro

Конструкцията с да (няма инфинитив)

Bulgarian has NO infinitive — there is no single 'to read' word. Where English uses 'to + verb', Bulgarian uses да + a normal present-tense verb that agrees with the subject. So 'I want to read' is искам да чета (literally 'I-want that I-read'), and 'I begin to study' is започвам да уча. The verb after да changes its ending to match who is doing it: искам да чета (I), искаш да четеш (you), иска да чете (he/she). This да-construction is everywhere: after искам, мога, трябва, започвам, обичам, and many others. Just remember: there is no 'to read' form — you always pick a finite present-tense verb after да.

Key rule

Bulgarian has no infinitive: use да + a finite present-tense verb that agrees with the subject (искам да чета, започваш да разбираш).

Examples

Искам да чета.
Искам чета.
The connecting particle да is obligatory between the two verbs.
Започвам да уча български.
Започвам учи български.
After да the verb agrees with the subject 'I': уча, not the 3rd-person учи.
Тя иска да дойде.
Тя иска да дойда.
The да-verb agrees with тя (3rd singular): да дойде, not the 1st-person да дойда.

Common mistakes

Omitting да between two verbs
Искам чета.
Искам да чета.
Bulgarian has no infinitive, so the two verbs must be joined by да.
Using a non-agreeing verb after да
Искам да чете. (за себе си)
Искам да чета.
The verb after да is finite and agrees with the subject — here 1st singular чета.

A1Verb usage

Reflexive verbs with се — introduction (казвам се)

Възвратни глаголи със се — увод

Many Bulgarian verbs come with the little word се attached — these are reflexive verbs, and се is part of the verb's meaning. The most important one for beginners is казвам се ('my name is', literally 'I call myself'): Казвам се Иван. Other everyday examples are мия се ('to wash'), обличам се ('to get dressed'), радвам се ('to be glad'), чувствам се ('to feel'), смея се ('to laugh'). You should learn these verbs together WITH се, as a single unit — се does not disappear. се changes with… nothing: it stays се for every person (казвам се, казваш се, казва се). What you DO need to learn is WHERE се goes in the sentence — that placement is covered in a separate clitics tag.

Key rule

Learn reflexive verbs together with their fixed се, which stays the same for every person (казвам се, казваш се, казва се).

Examples

Казвам се Мария.
Казвам Мария.
Without се the verb means 'I say'; the reflexive казвам се means 'my name is'.
Как се казваш?
Как казваш се?
се is verb-adjacent and stands before the verb here: как се казваш.
Детето се облича само.
Детето облича само.
Without се, облича means 'dresses (someone)'; the reflexive облича се means 'gets dressed'.

Common mistakes

Dropping the lexical се
Казвам Иван.
Казвам се Иван.
казвам се is one unit meaning 'my name is'; without се it means 'I say Ivan'.
Omitting се from an inherently reflexive verb
Радвам да те видя.
Радвам се да те видя.
радвам се has no non-reflexive counterpart; се is obligatory.

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A1 Bulgarian Grammar — 71 Topics & Common Mistakes

Three Genders (m/f/n) & How to Recognise Them

Plural of Masculine Nouns (-и, -ове, -е)

Plural of Feminine (-и) & Neuter (-а/-та) Nouns

Adjective Agreement in Gender (-Ø/-а/-о)

Adjective Agreement in the Plural (-и)

The Counting Form (бройна форма): два стола

Counting Persons: двама/трима + Men's Plural

Subject–Verb Agreement (Person & Number)

Clitics sit next to the verb (NOT 2nd position)

The reflexive clitic се / си

The accusative object clitic (го, я, ги)

The dative object clitic (ми, му, ѝ, им)

The question particle ли — placement

Basic clitic cluster order (не/се/му/го/съм)

Definiteness in Bulgarian — postposed clitic article

Feminine definite article -та (жената)

Neuter definite article -то (детето)

Masculine definite article -ът/-ят (forms only)

Masculine full -ът/-ят vs short -а/-я — the two forms

Plural definite article -те/-та (книгите)

The article attaches to the FIRST NP element

The emerging indefinite article един (a/an)

The Cyrillic Alphabet (30 Letters)

The Vowel ъ (er golyam) — a Full Vowel

Capitalisation (Lowercase Days, Months, Nationalities)

ти vs Вие (Informal vs Formal/Plural Address)

Formal Address: господин / госпожо / госпожице

Cardinal Numbers 0–100 (нула, едно … сто)

Days & Months (lowercase; понеделник, януари)

Everyday Lexis: седмица = week, неделя = Sunday

на for Possession (книгата на Иван)

на for the Indirect Object (давам на Иван)

в / във (in, into) — Location and Motion

с / със (with) — Accompaniment and Means

за (for, to, about)

от (from, out of, since)

до / към (to, up to, towards)

на (on, at) — Surface and Place

Personal pronouns — long subject forms (аз, ти, той)

Object pronouns — long vs short (мене/ме)

Dative short pronouns (ми, ти, му, ѝ)

Possessive pronouns — long forms (мой, твой, наш)

Possessive short (clitic) forms (книгата ми)

Demonstratives този / онзи (this / that)

Interrogatives кой (who) & какво (what)

Interrogatives какъв (what kind) & чий (whose)

Reflexive pronoun се / себе си — introduction

Basic Word Order (SVO)

Existentials има / няма (there is / there isn't)

Sentence Negation with не

Yes/No Questions with ли

Wh-Questions (Кой? Какво? Къде? Кога? Защо?)

Negative Words Need не (никой не знае)

Basic Connectors: и, а, но, или, защото

Present of съм (to be) — am/is/are

Present — first (e-)conjugation (чета, пиша)

Present — second (и-)conjugation (говоря, ходя)

Present — third (a-)conjugation (искам, гледам)

Present of имам / нямам (have / not have)

Negation of the present with не

Future with invariant ще + present (ще работя)

Negative future: няма да + present (няма да дойда)

Present for habit & near future (Утре пътувам)

съм as copula + predicate (Аз съм лекар)

Imperative — basic forms (чети! говорете!)

Negative command: недей(те) да + present

The да-construction (no infinitive) — intro

Modal искам да + present (искам да отида)

Modal мога да (can / be able) + present

Modal трябва да (must / have to) + present

Reflexive verbs with се — introduction (казвам се)