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RUSSIAN VERB

свистеть

to whistle (of a person, a kettle, a monitor)

  • Imperfective verb

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Настоящее время · now and habits: imperfective verbs only

  1. я I whistle
  2. ты you whistle
  3. он, она, оно he/she whistles
  4. мы we whistle
  5. вы you all whistle
  6. они they whistle

Past

Прошедшее время · by gender and number: он говорил, она говорила

  1. он he whistled
  2. она she whistled
  3. оно it whistled
  4. они they whistled

Future

Будущее время · “буду” and the infinitive for an imperfective verb; a perfective verb conjugates by itself

  1. я I will whistle
  2. ты you will whistle
  3. он, она, оно he/she will whistle
  4. мы we will whistle
  5. вы you all will whistle
  6. они they will whistle

Conditional

Условное наклонение · “would”: the past and “бы”

  1. он he would whistle
  2. она she would whistle
  3. оно it would whistle
  4. они they would whistle

Imperative

Повелительное наклонение · requests and orders: ты, вы

  1. ты whistle!
  2. вы whistle! (formal, or all of you)

How to use свистеть

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    Чайник свистит, выключи его, пожалуйста.

    The kettle's whistling, turn it off, please.

  2. Past

    Ветер свистел в окнах всю ночь.

    The wind whistled in the windows all night.

  3. Future

    Я буду свистеть под окном, выходи.

    I'll whistle under the window, come out.

  4. Conditional

    Я бы свистела, но не умею.

    I'd whistle, but I don't know how.

  5. Imperative

    Не свисти в доме, бабушка расстроится.

    Don't whistle in the house, Grandma will be upset.

Good to know

  • Свистеть is any whistle: a person, a kettle, the wind; свистнуть is one whistle. Russians say whistling indoors blows the money away.

Where you hear свистеть

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

Russian · Fluency Level 1

  • Монитор свистит, а Толик свистит громче. The monitor whistles, and Tolik whistles louder.
  • Вчера свистел левый микрофон. Yesterday the left mic was whistling.
  • Если так оставить, будет свистеть весь вечер. If we leave it like that, it'll whistle all evening.
5
Soundcheck

Fluency Level 1 · Ёлки-палки, и монитор свистит.

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Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: imperfective verb.