Section 1
Hobbies and leisure vocabulary
40 activities across sport, culture and everyday enjoyment.
| Bulgarian | Romanised | English |
|---|---|---|
| четене | chetene | reading |
| писане | pisane | writing |
| рисуване | risuvane | drawing / painting |
| снимане | snimane | photography |
| готвене | gotvene | cooking |
| градинарство | gradinarstvo | gardening |
| пътуване | patuvane | travelling |
| музика | muzika | music |
| пеене | peene | singing |
| свирене на китара | svirene na kitara | playing guitar |
| танци | tantsi | dancing |
| кино | kino | cinema / films |
| театър | teatar | theatre |
| игра на шах | igra na shah | chess |
| видео игри | video igri | video games |
| колекциониране | kolektsionirana | collecting |
| доброволчество | dobrovolchestvo | volunteering |
| Sport (Bulgarian) | Romanised | English |
|---|---|---|
| футбол | futbol | football |
| баскетбол | basketbol | basketball |
| тенис | tenis | tennis |
| плуване | pluvane | swimming |
| бягане | byagane | running |
| колоездене | koloezdene | cycling |
| планинарство | planinarstvo | hiking |
| ски | ski | skiing |
| йога | yoga | yoga |
| фитнес | fitnes | gym / fitness |
| бойни изкуства | boyni izkustva | martial arts |
| скално катерене | skalno katerene | rock climbing |
Section 2
Talking about your interests
The constructions you need to discuss hobbies naturally.
Bulgarian uses several constructions to express interest and enjoyment. The most natural are обичам да (I love to), харесва ми да (I like to), and the verbal noun directly: Четенето е моят любим хоби (Reading is my favourite hobby).
| Bulgarian | Romanised | English |
|---|---|---|
| Обичам да чета. | Obicham da cheta. | I love reading. |
| Харесва ми да готвя. | Haresva mi da gotvya. | I like cooking. |
| Интересувам се от музика. | Interesuvam se ot muzika. | I am interested in music. |
| Занимавам се с футбол. | Zanimavam se s futbol. | I do / play football. |
| Играя тенис всяка събота. | Igraya tenis vsyaka sabota. | I play tennis every Saturday. |
| Не ми харесва да тичам. | Ne mi haresva da ticham. | I don't like running. |
| Нямам хоби. | Nyamam hobi. | I don't have a hobby. |
| Какво правиш в свободното си време? | Kakvo pravish v svobodnoto si vreme? | What do you do in your free time? |
| Какви са твоите интереси? | Kakvi sa tvoite interesi? | What are your interests? |
| Спортуваш ли? | Sportuvash li? | Do you do sport? |
💡 Занимавам се с vs играя
Занимавам се с + noun = I do / I am involved in (broader, includes non-sport hobbies): занимавам се с музика, с рисуване, с футбол. Играя = I play (used for games and sports with a ball or opponent): играя футбол, тенис, шах. Both are correct for sport — занимавам се с sounds slightly more serious/committed.
Section 3
Frequency and intensity
How often and how seriously.
| Bulgarian | Romanised | English |
|---|---|---|
| веднъж седмично | vednaazh sedmichno | once a week |
| два пъти седмично | dva pati sedmichno | twice a week |
| всеки уикенд | vseki vikend | every weekend |
| от време на време | ot vreme na vreme | from time to time |
| редовно | redovno | regularly |
| сериозно | seriozno | seriously |
| за удоволствие | za udovolstvie | for pleasure |
| като хоби | kato hobi | as a hobby |
| на ниво аматьор | na nivo amаtyor | at amateur level |
| на професионално ниво | na profesionalno nivo | at professional level |
Section 4
Bulgarian cultural life
What Bulgarians typically do for leisure.
Understanding Bulgarian leisure culture helps you connect with native speakers. A few key facts: Bulgaria has a strong folk music and dance tradition (народна музика); hiking (планинарство) is extremely popular, with a network of mountain huts (хижи); football is the dominant sport (Левски and ЦСКА are the two biggest Sofia clubs); and Bulgarians are avid readers, with a strong tradition of poetry and literature.
| Bulgarian activity | Romanised | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| народни танци | narodni tantsi | Traditional folk dances — a living cultural practice, not just tourist entertainment |
| хоро | horo | The Bulgarian circle dance — performed at celebrations, festivals and weddings |
| розобер | rozober | Rose picking — a famous spring tradition in the Rose Valley (Казанлък) |
| пикник | piknik | Picnicking in nature — an extremely popular Bulgarian weekend activity |
| събори | sabori | Folk festivals — seasonal celebrations in villages and towns across Bulgaria |
Section 5
Dialogue — talking about free time
A full conversation about hobbies and interests.
— Какво обичаш да правиш в свободното си време?
— Обичам да чета и да готвя. Занимавам се и с фотография.
— Сериозно? Какво снимаш?
— Природа предимно — планини, залези, животни. Ходя планинарство всяка събота.
— Звучи страхотно! Аз не спортувам много, но обичам музиката.
— Свириш ли на инструмент?
— Да, уча китара от две години. Все още съм начинаещ, но много ми харесва.
— Супер! Аз обичах да пея в хор, но вече нямам толкова свободно време.
— Жалко. Трябва да намерим повече баланс между работа и хоби.
— Kakvo obicham da pravish v svobodnoto si vreme?
— Obicham da cheta i da gotvya. Zanimavam se i s fotografiya.
— Seriozno? Kakvo snimash?
— Priroda predimno — planini, zalezi, zhivotni. Hodya planinarstvo vsyaka sabota.
— Zvuchi strakhotno! Az ne sportuvam mnogo, no obicham muzikata.
— Svirish li na instrument?
— Da, ucha kitara ot dve godini. Vse oshte sam nachinаesht, no mnogo mi haresva.
— Super! Az obichah da peya v hor, no veche nyamam tolkova svobodno vreme.
— Zhalko. Tryabva da namerim poveche balans mezhdu rabota i hobi.
— What do you like to do in your free time?
— I like to read and to cook. I am also into photography.
— Really? What do you photograph?
— Nature mainly — mountains, sunsets, animals. I go hiking every Saturday.
— Sounds great! I don't do much sport, but I love music.
— Do you play an instrument?
— Yes, I have been learning guitar for two years. I am still a beginner, but I enjoy it a lot.
— Nice! I used to sing in a choir, but I don't have that much free time any more.
— What a shame. We need to find more balance between work and hobbies.
Section 6
Writing task
✏️ Writing task — Day 27
- Write a paragraph about your own hobbies using обичам да, харесва ми да, and занимавам се с.
- Translate: "I play football twice a week. I also like reading — especially history books."
- Write three questions you would ask someone to find out about their interests.
- Name three typically Bulgarian leisure activities and briefly describe each.
Show answers
1. Free answer — aim for 6+ sentences with frequency expressions.
2. Играя футбол два пъти седмично. Обичам и да чета — особено исторически книги.
3. E.g. Спортуваш ли? Какво обичаш да правиш вечер? Интересуваш ли се от музика?
4. народни танци (folk circle dances), хоро (circle dance at celebrations), планинарство (hiking — huge national pastime).
Day 27 Quiz
8 questions · score 6+ to mark day complete
Question 1 of 8
"I am interested in music" — correct Bulgarian:
Question 2 of 8
"I play chess" in Bulgarian:
Question 3 of 8
"Twice a week" in Bulgarian:
Question 4 of 8
"What do you do in your free time?":
Question 5 of 8
What is "хоро"?
Question 6 of 8
"For pleasure" in Bulgarian:
Question 7 of 8
"I love cooking" in Bulgarian:
Question 8 of 8
"From time to time" in Bulgarian:
Day 27 Recap
Review before Day 28. Every point builds on the last.
| Topic | Key point | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Hobbies | четене · готвене · рисуване · пътуване · музика · танци · кино · планинарство | Verbal nouns — all end in -не/-ство |
| Sports | футбол · тенис · плуване · бягане · колоездене · ски · йога · фитнес | |
| Обичам да | I love to — followed by да + verb: обичам да чета, да готвя, да пея. | Most natural for hobbies |
| Занимавам се с | I do / am into — followed by noun: занимавам се с музика, с футбол. | Slightly more serious/committed |
| Frequency | веднъж/два пъти седмично · всеки уикенд · от време на време · редовно | |
| Bulgarian culture | народни танци · хоро · планинарство · розобер · събори | Know these for citizenship exam context |