Renarrative Past Perfect Tense
Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
Use this tense to report an action that was completed before another past event, when you didn't witness it yourself.
- Use 'бил/била/било/били' + past active participle of the main verb.
- Always use this when relaying gossip or news about past events you didn't see.
- The auxiliary 'съм' is often omitted in the 3rd person.
Renarrative Past Perfect Conjugation
| Person | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1st Sing.
|
бил съм направил
|
била съм направила
|
-
|
-
|
|
2nd Sing.
|
бил си направил
|
била си направила
|
-
|
-
|
|
3rd Sing.
|
бил направил
|
била направила
|
било направило
|
-
|
|
1st Pl.
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
били сме направили
|
|
2nd Pl.
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
били сте направили
|
|
3rd Pl.
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
били направили
|
Meanings
The Renarrative Past Perfect expresses an action completed before another past action, reported by someone who did not witness it directly.
Reported Pluperfect
Relaying information about a completed past action.
“Казаха, че той бил свършил работата си.”
“Твърдеше се, че тя била прочела книгата.”
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Affirmative
|
бил + Participle
|
Той бил чел.
|
|
Negative
|
не + бил + Participle
|
Той не бил чел.
|
|
Question
|
бил ли + Participle
|
Той бил ли е чел?
|
|
3rd Person
|
бил + Participle
|
Тя била чела.
|
|
Plural
|
били + Participle
|
Те били чели.
|
Espectro de formalidad
Според доклада, той бил завършил отчета. (Work report)
Казаха, че той бил завършил отчета. (Work report)
Чух, че той бил завършил отчета. (Work report)
Май бил завършил отчета. (Work report)
Renarrative Logic
Usage
- Gossip Rumors
- News Reporting
Form
- бил auxiliary
- Participle verb
Ejemplos por nivel
Той бил ял.
He had eaten (I heard).
Тя била спала.
She had slept (I heard).
Те били дошли.
They had come (I heard).
То било валяло.
It had rained (I heard).
Казаха, че той бил купил кола.
They said he had bought a car.
Тя ми каза, че била прочела книгата.
She told me she had read the book.
Разбрах, че те били заминали.
I found out they had left.
Чух, че той бил направил грешка.
I heard he had made a mistake.
Твърди се, че той бил завършил университета преди да замине.
It is claimed he had finished university before leaving.
Оказа се, че тя била написала писмото още вчера.
It turned out she had written the letter yesterday.
Те казаха, че били видели филма преди премиерата.
They said they had seen the film before the premiere.
Слуховете гласят, че той бил продал къщата си.
Rumors say he had sold his house.
Според доклада, компанията била инвестирала милиони преди кризата.
According to the report, the company had invested millions before the crisis.
Тя твърдеше, че била подготвила всичко необходимо за срещата.
She claimed she had prepared everything necessary for the meeting.
Свидетелите разказаха, че той бил избягал преди полицията да дойде.
Witnesses said he had fled before the police arrived.
Никой не знаеше, че те били сключили договор тайно.
No one knew they had signed a contract secretly.
Въпреки че отричаше, се оказа, че той бил планирал всичко от месеци.
Although he denied it, it turned out he had planned everything for months.
Историците смятат, че владетелят бил укрепил границите преди нашествието.
Historians believe the ruler had fortified the borders before the invasion.
Тя призна, че била скрила истината, за да защити семейството си.
She admitted she had hidden the truth to protect her family.
След като разследването приключи, стана ясно, че те били фалшифицирали документите.
After the investigation ended, it became clear they had forged the documents.
В мемоарите си той споменава, че бил предвидил разпада на съюза още в началото.
In his memoirs, he mentions he had foreseen the collapse of the union from the start.
Анализаторите посочват, че пазарът бил достигнал своя пик преди срива.
Analysts point out that the market had reached its peak before the crash.
Тя разказваше, че била изживяла най-щастливите си години в този град.
She recounted that she had lived her happiest years in this city.
Въпреки че никой не го вярваше, той бил изградил цялата система сам.
Although no one believed it, he had built the whole system himself.
Fácil de confundir
Both describe past-before-past.
Errores comunes
Той беше направил.
Той бил направил.
Тя бил направила.
Тя била направила.
Те бил направили.
Те били направили.
Той е бил направил.
Той бил направил.
Patrones de oraciones
Казаха, че той ___ ___.
Real World Usage
Полицията съобщи, че извършителят бил избягал.
Listen for 'бил'
Smart Tips
Use 'бил' to avoid responsibility.
Pronunciación
Stress
The stress remains on the main verb participle.
Reporting
Той бил направил ↗
Rising intonation implies uncertainty or hearsay.
Memorízalo
Mnemotecnia
B-I-L is the key, for things you didn't see.
Asociación visual
Imagine a telephone wire connecting you to a person who is whispering a story. The 'B-I-L' is the wire carrying the past action to your ears.
Rhyme
When you didn't see the act, use 'бил' to state the fact.
Story
Maria tells me she had finished her work. I tell Peter: 'Maria била свършила работата'. Peter tells Anna: 'Maria била свършила работата'. The 'бил' travels through the chain.
Word Web
Desafío
Find a news article in Bulgarian and rewrite 3 sentences using the Renarrative Past Perfect.
Notas culturales
Using this tense shows you are a careful speaker who doesn't spread unverified facts as absolute truth.
Derived from the Old Church Slavonic system of evidentiality.
Inicios de conversación
Чу ли какво се е случило?
Temas para diario
Errores comunes
Test Yourself
Той ___ (заминал) преди да дойда.
Score: /1
Ejercicios de practica
1 exercisesТой ___ (заминал) преди да дойда.
Score: /1
Preguntas frecuentes (1)
No, only for actions you didn't witness.
Scaffolded Practice
1
Mastery Progress
Needs Practice
Improving
Strong
Mastered
In Other Languages
Dicen que...
Bulgarian encodes it in the verb, Spanish uses a phrase.
On dit que...
Bulgarian verb morphology vs French syntax.
Konjunktiv I
German is for indirect speech, Bulgarian is for evidentiality.
Sou/Rashii
Japanese uses particles, Bulgarian uses verb conjugation.
Qila
Bulgarian is a tense, Arabic is a passive construction.
据说
Chinese is lexical, Bulgarian is grammatical.
