# Вы зашли?



## macdevster

My Uzbek students often use this phrase with me when they see me leaving the building unexpectedly. It always come across as “You’re leaving?” But why in the past tense, when I’m standing in front of them?  Is this slang or a grammatical function that I don’t remember from my college days in St. Petersburg?


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## Rosett

They were, most likely, asking you, «Вы ушли?».

«Вы зашли?» can only hypothetically make sense if you met your students inside, just behind the classroom doors, and if you were moving inward from the hallway, but then suddenly stopped halfway (in an awkward position blocking the entry and preventing someone to close the door behind you) and started scratching your head instead of immediately taking your teacher’s place inside the classroom in front of the students already sitting there.

Anyway, in both cases, Past tense is a figure of speech, stating that you’re done with the business or with what you intended to do (enter the classroom, hypothetically as described above) and expressing a function of Perfect which is grammatically underrepresented by only perfective aspect in Modern Russian, as if it were Present Perfect in English, a sort of “Have you done/gone (for today)/entered (or what)???”


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## Vovan

I think it's "Вы пошли?", Macdevster, and it is used exactly the way you described. Using the past tense here should be regarded as an exception to the rules. I can't even think of similar examples...


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## Sobakus

Perfective verbs of movement are routinely used in the past tense instead of the imperfective present you might expect to express immediate plans ("consider me X"). This usage also exists in English: "I'm off for a snack" means "I'm going to go...", not "I'm away at the moment of speaking". It's definitely not _зашли _("entered, dropped by"; this usage is impossible with this verb), though, but either _пошли_ or _ушли_.


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## Tubayka

When they want to know, you left completely and you can not be returned. They ask: Ты ушёл?
Though you are standing here, but the question has already been resolved, you are going to leave and there is nothing to talk about. You say: Я ушёл. (Меня нет.)

If you are ready to continue the conversation, then you can say: Ухожу (Говорите что надо?)
After that, you stay and continue the conversation.


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## macdevster

So who typically uses this kind of speech?  Is it informal?  Is it used more often among young people?  Is it socio-economic related?


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## Vovan

_"Вы пошли?"_ or _"Ты пошёл?"_ is absolutely standard Russian that is used by everyone. The use of the past tense can be explained with the help of "уже́" (already) which can easily be inserted:
_Ну что, вы уже пошли? (=I see you're already leaving, right?)_​


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## Vovan

> Прош. вр. глаголов сов. вида при обозначении будущих действий. Контекст указывает на будущее, форма же прош. вр. сохраняет свое категориальное значение. В результате объективно будущее действие представляется так, как будто оно уже осуществилось. Особенно часто в таком употреблении выступают формы прош. вр. глаголов _погибнуть_, _пропасть_: _Если_ _он_ _не_ _вернется_, _мы_ _погибли_ (..._мы_ _пропали_). Реже используются другие глаголы: _Бежать_, _бежать_! _Иначе_ _я_ _умер_ (Фед.). В подобных случаях выражается модальный оттенок уверенности говорящего в том, что действие осуществится.
> 
> К такому употреблению примыкают эмоциональноэкспрессивные предложения типа _Так_ _я_ _и_ _поверил_!; _Как_ _же_, _испугался_ _я_! Отрицание факта в будущем эмоционально выражается как ироническое признание его уже осуществившимся. Разговорный характер имеет употребление типа _Я_ _пошел_; _Мы_ _побежали_.
> 
> 
> КАТЕГОРИЯ ВРЕМЕНИ


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## Tubayka

Vovan said:


> _"Вы пошли?"_ or _"Ты пошёл?"_ is absolutely standard Russian that is used by everyone. The use of the past tense can be explained with the help of "уже́" (already) which can easily be inserted:
> _Ну что, вы уже пошли? (=I see you're already leaving, right?)_​


Expression with the word "Пошёл" "Ушел" in the past or the present can motivate people to act in the future.
For example.
To complete the conversation, you can induce the completion.
"Всё? Уже уходите?" or "Всё? Уже ушли?"
If you get up when you say this phrase. Then the interlocutor will understand that the conversation is over.

or a rough expression:
"Ушёл от сюда."

sometimes the use of the past time in the expression sounds rude and can be regarded as a curse.
very fine border. It is important with what expressive phrase is pronounced.


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## Q-cumber

Tubayka said:


> or a rough expression:
> "Ушёл от сюда."


"Отсюда" is an adverb and it should be written as one word.


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## Rosett

macdevster said:


> So who typically uses this kind of speech?  Is it informal?  Is it used more often among young people?  Is it socio-economic related?


What exactly do they say? Because until now, the title of your OP is misleading.


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## macdevster

Rosett said:


> What exactly do they say? Because until now, the title of your OP is misleading.



I thought the student had said _Вы зашли?_ when he saw me leaving. Maybe it was “пошли” but the more important question was use of past tense when (in English, at least) the situation seemed to merit present tense. 

Maybe I can equate it to some of my American born students who might ask, “You out?” when I’m right there but I’m obviously leaving.


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## Maroseika

If they met you leaving the building, it's quite natural to use Past Tense, because they meant to ask wheather you have left your working place, not building. What's meant actually is "Вы ушли с работы" (finished work for today or for a while) or "Вы пошли" (e.g. домой).
Of course, "Вы зашли" by no means works here .


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## Rosett

macdevster said:


> I thought the student had said _Вы зашли?_ when he saw me leaving. Maybe it was “пошли” but the more important question was use of past tense when (in English, at least) the situation seemed to merit present tense.
> 
> Maybe I can equate it to some of my American born students who might ask, “You out?” when I’m right there but I’m obviously leaving.


“You’re out?” conveys a slightly different meaning. I think in English they say, “Are you gone/done/finished?” when they see you leaving.

However, as I mentioned before, modern Past tense of «ушли/пошли» in Russian conveys a sort of Present Perfect sense in English - something that was inherited by Modern Russian after other past tenses and perfect/imperfect aspects disappeared historically.

The following example demonstrates how both Present Perfect and Past Simple are expressed by the same grammatical Past tense in Russian:

«Сегодня мы встали и позавтракали», where «встали» conveys Present Perfect sense (we got up at some moment and we are still up,) and «позавтракали» - Past Simple (we finished eating.)

In your example, it could be similar to the above, «Сегодня ушёл (с работы) и сел в автобус(, чтобы ехать домой)».


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## Budspok

The use of the past tense in similar situations is quite normal in Russian. It doesn't relate to any social or age group whatsoever. You can hear Ну чтО, пошлИ? (meaning OK let's go.) more  often than Ну чтО, пойдём?, which might seem more correct. The same with Hу я пошёл. (So I'm leaving.) etc


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## Rosett

Budspok said:


> The same with Hу я пошёл. (So I'm leaving.) etc


“(So )I’m leaving” corresponds to «(Ну что, )я ухожу».
«(Ну, )я пошёл» corresponds to “(OK, )I’m gone.”


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## Sobakus

Tubayka said:


> or a rough expression:
> "Ушёл от сюда."
> 
> sometimes the use of the past time in the expression sounds rude and can be regarded as a curse.
> very fine border. It is important with what expressive phrase is pronounced.


It's worth reassuring the learners that this is the categorical imperative (likewise discussed more than once on this forum) and has very little to do with the discussed usage, which can never be rude.


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## rusita preciosa

_Mod note: The topic is fully explored, the thread is now closed_


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