A short list of pronouns, particles, and verbs carries most of everyday Ukrainian. Words like я, не, і, and бути turn up in nearly every sentence, long before you need any specialized vocabulary. Learn these hundred well and you will already recognize a large share of what you hear and read.
How to use this list
Do not work through this list top to bottom. Read down it and mark only the words you could not have produced yourself. Those are your list. The rest are already yours, and reviewing them is wasted effort better spent on words you actually meet in reading, conversation, or subtitles.
The 100 words
| # | Ukrainian | English | In use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | і | and | Я і ти йдемо додому.You and I are going home. |
| 2 | й | and (after a vowel) | Мама й тато вдома.Mom and dad are at home. |
| 3 | а | and, but | Я читаю, а він пише.I am reading, and he is writing. |
| 4 | але | but | Я втомлений, але щасливий.I am tired, but happy. |
| 5 | або | or | Хочеш чай або каву?Do you want tea or coffee? |
| 6 | що | that, what | Я знаю, що ти зайнятий.I know that you are busy. |
| 7 | як | how, as | Як справи?How are you? |
| 8 | якщо | if | Якщо буде дощ, ми залишимось вдома.If it rains, we will stay home. |
| 9 | бо | because | Я пішов додому, бо був хворий.I went home because I was sick. |
| 10 | не | not | Це не правда.This is not true. |
| 11 | ні | no | Ні, дякую.No, thank you. |
| 12 | так | yes, so | Так, я згоден.Yes, I agree. |
| 13 | теж | also, too | Я теж хочу піти.I also want to go. |
| 14 | тільки | only | У мене тільки одна книга.I have only one book. |
| 15 | вже | already | Ми вже поїли.We have already eaten. |
| 16 | ще | still, yet | Він ще спить.He is still sleeping. |
| 17 | дуже | very | Це дуже смачно.This is very tasty. |
| 18 | можна | one may, it's possible | Можна відкрити вікно?May I open the window? |
| 19 | треба | need to, must | Мені треба йти.I need to go. |
| 20 | я | I | Я живу в Києві.I live in Kyiv. |
| 21 | ти | you (singular) | Ти дуже добрий друг.You are a very good friend. |
| 22 | він | he | Він працює вчителем.He works as a teacher. |
| 23 | вона | she | Вона читає книгу.She is reading a book. |
| 24 | воно | it | Сонце світить, воно тепле.The sun is shining, it is warm. |
| 25 | ми | we | Ми йдемо в кіно.We are going to the movies. |
| 26 | ви | you (plural, formal) | Звідки ви приїхали?Where did you come from? |
| 27 | вони | they | Вони живуть у Львові.They live in Lviv. |
| 28 | це | this, it | Це моя сестра.This is my sister. |
| 29 | той | that | Той будинок дуже старий.That building is very old. |
| 30 | хто | who | Хто це зробив?Who did this? |
| 31 | який | which, what kind of | Який фільм тобі подобається?Which movie do you like? |
| 32 | мій | my | Це мій телефон.This is my phone. |
| 33 | твій | your (singular) | Де твій брат?Where is your brother? |
| 34 | наш | our | Наш дім біля річки.Our house is near the river. |
| 35 | свій | one's own | Він любить свою роботу.He loves his own job. |
| 36 | бути | to be | Я хочу бути лікарем.I want to be a doctor. |
| 37 | мати | to have | Вона має двох дітей.She has two children. |
| 38 | робити | to do | Що ти зараз робиш?What are you doing now? |
| 39 | йти | to go, to walk | Ми йдемо до парку.We are going to the park. |
| 40 | говорити | to speak | Ти говориш українською?Do you speak Ukrainian? |
| 41 | сказати | to say | Він хотів щось сказати.He wanted to say something. |
| 42 | знати | to know | Я не знаю відповіді.I don't know the answer. |
| 43 | хотіти | to want | Я хочу спати.I want to sleep. |
| 44 | могти | can, to be able | Ти можеш мені допомогти?Can you help me? |
| 45 | бачити | to see | Я бачу твій дім звідси.I can see your house from here. |
| 46 | дивитися | to watch, to look | Діти дивляться телевізор.The children are watching TV. |
| 47 | думати | to think | Я думаю про тебе.I am thinking about you. |
| 48 | любити | to love, to like | Я люблю свою родину.I love my family. |
| 49 | жити | to live | Ми живемо в маленькому місті.We live in a small town. |
| 50 | працювати | to work | Вона працює в лікарні.She works at a hospital. |
| 51 | питати | to ask | Можна тебе щось запитати?Can I ask you something? |
| 52 | давати | to give | Він дає гроші синові.He gives money to his son. |
| 53 | брати | to take | Візьми свою куртку.Take your jacket. |
| 54 | приходити | to come | Він завжди приходить вчасно.He always comes on time. |
| 55 | розуміти | to understand | Я тебе не розумію.I don't understand you. |
| 56 | пам'ятати | to remember | Я добре пам'ятаю той день.I remember that day well. |
| 57 | чути | to hear | Ти чуєш цю музику?Can you hear this music? |
| 58 | читати | to read | Вона любить читати книги.She loves reading books. |
| 59 | писати | to write | Я пишу листа другу.I am writing a letter to a friend. |
| 60 | їсти | to eat | Ми їмо о сьомій годині.We eat at seven o'clock. |
| 61 | пити | to drink | Хочеш пити воду?Do you want to drink water? |
| 62 | спати | to sleep | Дитина вже спить.The child is already asleep. |
| 63 | сидіти | to sit | Кіт сидить на вікні.The cat is sitting on the windowsill. |
| 64 | стояти | to stand | Він стоїть біля дверей.He is standing near the door. |
| 65 | людина | person | Кожна людина унікальна.Every person is unique. |
| 66 | чоловік | man, husband | Цей чоловік мій сусід.This man is my neighbor. |
| 67 | жінка | woman, wife | Жінка посміхнулася мені.The woman smiled at me. |
| 68 | дитина | child | Дитина грається в саду.The child is playing in the garden. |
| 69 | друг | friend | Він мій найкращий друг.He is my best friend. |
| 70 | день | day | Сьогодні чудовий день.Today is a wonderful day. |
| 71 | рік | year | Цей рік був важким.This year was hard. |
| 72 | час | time | У нас немає часу.We don't have time. |
| 73 | дім | house, home | Ласкаво просимо до нашого дому.Welcome to our home. |
| 74 | вода | water | Можна склянку води?Can I have a glass of water? |
| 75 | їжа | food | Ця їжа дуже смачна.This food is very tasty. |
| 76 | робота | work, job | Мені подобається моя робота.I like my job. |
| 77 | місце | place | Це моє улюблене місце.This is my favorite place. |
| 78 | слово | word | Не знаю цього слова.I don't know this word. |
| 79 | життя | life | Життя прекрасне.Life is beautiful. |
| 80 | світ | world | Він багато подорожує світом.He travels around the world a lot. |
| 81 | рука | hand | Дай мені свою руку.Give me your hand. |
| 82 | голова | head | У мене болить голова.My head hurts. |
| 83 | добрий | good, kind | Він добрий хлопець.He is a good boy. |
| 84 | поганий | bad | У нас був поганий день.We had a bad day. |
| 85 | великий | big | Це дуже великий будинок.This is a very big house. |
| 86 | маленький | small | Це маленький котик.This is a small kitten. |
| 87 | новий | new | Я купив новий телефон.I bought a new phone. |
| 88 | старий | old | Це старий міст.This is an old bridge. |
| 89 | гарний | beautiful, nice | Який гарний краєвид!What a beautiful view! |
| 90 | довгий | long | Це довгий шлях.This is a long road. |
| 91 | короткий | short | Це короткий фільм.This is a short film. |
| 92 | важливий | important | Це дуже важливе питання.This is a very important question. |
| 93 | інший | other, different | Дай мені іншу книгу.Give me another book. |
| 94 | простий | simple | Це просте питання.This is a simple question. |
| 95 | складний | difficult | Це складне завдання.This is a difficult task. |
| 96 | тут | here | Я тут живу.I live here. |
| 97 | там | there | Книга лежить там.The book is lying there. |
| 98 | зараз | now | Зараз я зайнятий.I am busy right now. |
| 99 | сьогодні | today | Сьогодні гарна погода.The weather is nice today. |
| 100 | багато | a lot, many | У нього багато друзів.He has a lot of friends. |
The ones English speakers get wrong
The case system
Ukrainian nouns, pronouns, and adjectives change form depending on their role in the sentence, across seven cases. 'Книга' (a book, nominative) becomes 'книги' in the genitive and 'книзі' in the locative, among other forms. It looks intimidating on paper, but the patterns repeat across large groups of words, so they get more predictable with exposure.
Verb aspect
Most Ukrainian verbs come in pairs, an imperfective form for ongoing or repeated actions and a perfective form for a single completed action. 'Робити' means to do or to be doing, while 'зробити' means to do it once and finish it. Choosing the right one matters more for meaning than tense often does.
неділя vs. Russian неделя
Ukrainian 'неділя' means Sunday, while the similar-looking Russian word 'неделя' means week. It's one of the more famous false friends between the two languages, and it trips up even confident Russian speakers learning Ukrainian.
The vocative case
Ukrainian has a special form for directly addressing someone, the vocative case. You'd greet your mother as 'Мамо!' rather than using the nominative 'мама', and call a friend named Олена 'Олено!'. English has nothing quite like it, since we just use the name as is.
Gender agreement
Adjectives, past-tense verbs, and some pronouns all change to match the gender of the noun they go with: masculine, feminine, or neuter. 'Добрий' (good) becomes 'добра' for a feminine noun and 'добре' for a neuter one. It's worth tracking a new noun's gender the moment you learn it, since it shapes everything attached to it.
What to do next
A list this size is about two weeks of light daily review, and it is the difference between decoding Ukrainian and following it.