Lyubity

Lyubity is a Slavic verb meaning “to love” or “to like.” In Ukrainian and related languages, the infinitive is written as любити (transliterated as lyubyty or lyubity), and it denotes affection or preference across contexts from romantic love to general fondness. The verb is common in daily speech and literature, and it participates in standard Slavic verb conjugation patterns.

Etymology and cognates: Lyubity derives from a common Slavic root ljub- meaning dear or loved. Its closest cognates include Russian любить (lyubit’), Belarusian любіць (liubit’), and Polish lubić. These forms share the core meaning of loving or liking and show parallel insultation of the same root across East and West Slavic languages.

Usage and nuance: In Ukrainian, Russian, and other Slavic languages, lyubity expresses both romantic love and ordinary affection or preference for objects, activities, or people. Context often determines the nuance: stronger affection may be expressed with more intense forms or with perfective derivatives, while casual liking uses the imperfective base form. The verb can also appear in phrases indicating fondness that develops over time, such as “to start liking.”

Conjugation (illustrative, Ukrainian): Infinitive любити. Present: я люблю, ти любиш, він любить, ми любимо, ви любите, вони люблять. Past: я любив/я любила/воно любило/вони любили. Future imperfective: буду любити. Perfective derivatives exist, for example полюбити meaning “to come to love” or “to fall in love,” with forms полюблю, полюбиш, полюбить, полюбимо, полюбите, полюблять.

See also: любити in Russian, lubić in Polish, ljubiti in other Slavic languages.