4.4 - Occupations
When talking about people, for example when mentioning their occupation or other details, the verb "to be" need not be used. It is implicit, unless you wish to emphasise it. For example:
| Богдан – журналіст. | Bohdan is a journalist. |
| Олена – музикантка. | Olena is a musician. |
| Я – студент. А Ви? | I'm a student. And you? |
N.B. Most occupations have a masculine and a feminine version:
| журналіст – журналістка |
| музикант – музикантка |
| лікар – лікарка |
| студент – студентка |
| вчитель – вчителька |
| офіціант – офіціантка |
| бізнесмен – бізнесменка |
For some occupations there is a single (masculine) form for both genders, for example:
| архітектор |
| археолог |
| стоматолог |
| політик |
When talking about someone, we generally avoid repeating their name after it's been mentioned once, and use personal pronouns instead:
| Богдан – журналіст? | Так, він журналіст. (Yes, he is a journalist.) |
| Олена – музикантка? | Так, вона музикантка. (Yes, she is a musician.) |
| Ігор та Віра – студенти? | Так, вони студенти. (Yes, they are students.) |
Given below are the personal pronouns you will need to use when mentioning who someone is or what their occupation is:
| я | ти | він вона воно |
ми | ви | вони |
| I | you (informal singular) |
he she it |
we |
you (formal or plural |
they |
To practise all the above points, try Exercise 4.4A. In this exercise the verb працювати (to work) is used.