Every Day I Go: ходить & ездить
Идти and ехать cover this trip, right now. For habits, repeated trips and round trips, Russian insists on their partners: ходить and ездить. Together they're the famous four — and after this lesson, they're untangled.
ходить — On Foot, Habitually
Я хожу в школу каждый день.
I go to school every day.
Note: Repeated trips, there and back — ходить. Compare: Я иду в школу (I'm walking there right now).
ездить — By Vehicle, Habitually
Я езжу на работу на метро.
I take the metro to work.
Note: A daily wheeled commute → ездить: я езжу, ты ездишь, он ездит.
Мы ездим на море каждое лето.
We go to the sea every summer.
Note: Once a year is still a habit — ездить.
The Signal Words
Hear one of these, and the habitual verb follows automatically:
The Rule of Thumb
Common Mistakes
- Я иду в кино каждую субботу. A weekly habit needs хожу. Идти is only ever one trip.
- Ходить for vehicles. Trams and habits on wheels take ездить (though buses themselves ходят — vehicles on routes 'walk' in Russian, a curiosity for later).
- Overthinking mid-sentence. Frequency word present → habitual verb. Trust the signal.
What You Can Do Now
You can describe your commute, your gym schedule, your cinema habit — any repeated journey — and instantly hear the difference between "I'm going" and "I go".