The conditional

After this page you will be able to say would in Ukrainian: to express a wish (I would like…), to make a polite request, and to talk about things that are not real with якби́ (if I had time, I would go). You will know when to write би and when б, where the word goes in the sentence, and how a real condition with якщо́ differs.

How to form it

The conditional (умо́вний спо́сіб) is easy to build. Take the past form of the verb, which you know from the past tense, and add the little word би or б [src: goroh-dictionary]. The verb agrees in gender and number, exactly as in the past tense. Би itself never changes.

The conditional has no tense of its own. The same form can refer to the present, the future or the past; the context decides.

Би or б?

The orthography gives a simple rule [src: pravopys-2026, §117]:

• б after a word that ends in a vowel: я хоті́ла б, вона́ б сказа́ла;
• би after a word that ends in a consonant: я хоті́в би, він би сказа́в.

The rule looks at the word just before the particle, whatever that word is. The particle би / б that forms the conditional is always written as a separate word [src: pravopys-2026, §44, §117]. Inside conjunctions such as якби́ and щоб it is part of the word (see below) [src: pravopys-2026, §43, §44].

Where би goes

Би usually comes straight after the verb, or after an earlier word in the sentence, often the subject. The orthography’s own examples include both я хоті́в би and я б про це розпові́в (I would talk about it) [src: pravopys-2026, §117].

Wishes

The conditional of хоті́ти with an infinitive is the usual way to say I would like to…. It is softer than я хо́чу (I want).

Polite requests

The conditional makes a request less direct. Two common patterns are я хоті́в би / я хоті́ла б + infinitive (I would like to…) and Чи не могли́ б ви + infinitive (Could you…?). Могли́ is the past form of могти́ (can, to be able). Politeness has more examples.

Unreal conditions with якби

To talk about something that is not true, or did not happen, use якби́ (if) in the if part and the conditional in the main part [src: goroh-dictionary]. The if part also uses the past form; якби́ already contains би, so it is not repeated there.

Якби́ is one word. Written apart, як би is the question word як (how) with the particle би: Як би кра́ще ви́конати це завда́ння! (How could this task best be done!) [src: pravopys-2026, §43].

Real conditions with якщо

When the condition is possible or likely, use якщо́ (if) and an ordinary tense, not the conditional. Where English uses the present after if for a future event, Ukrainian usually uses the future [src: goroh-dictionary].

Compare the two:

Щоб + past form

The conjunction щоб (so that, in order to) introduces a purpose [src: goroh-dictionary]. When the subject of both parts is the same person, it is usually followed by an infinitive. When the subject is different, the verb after щоб takes the past form, as in the conditional, but without a separate би: щоб already contains it. The same pattern reports a request or wish: Він сказа́в, щоб усі́ прийшли́. (He told everyone to come.) [src: pravopys-2026, §43].

Щоб is written as one word. Apart, що б is що (what) with the particle: Що б ви сказа́ли? (What would you say?) [src: pravopys-2026, §43].

Common mistakes and limits