глагол: бывать

[david-us.livejournal.com]

I run across this verb quite frequently and it seems to have various translations in English.

I would like to see some example sentences, using this verb, to better determine how it is commonly used. Could you please provide some examples along with the English translation?  

If the verb has various meanings in Russian, could you try to include sentences that highlight those differences?

As always, thanks.

Comments

[archaicos.livejournal.com]

Бывать can be used to describe:

1. regular visits to some place or simply being in some place at certain known time:
Он бывает у родителей каждую неделю.
He visits his parents every week.

Он бывает на работе с 9-ти до 5-ти.
He's at work from 9 to 5.

2. existence of something, usually in many forms/styles/etc:
Машины бывают разные: легковые, грузовые и спортивные.
Different cars exist: passenger cars, trucks and sports cars.

3. occurrences, something that takes place:
Со мной такого никогда не бывало (случалось/происходило).
Nothing like it/this (has) ever happened to me.

Занятия бывают (проходят/проводятся) по рабочим и выходным дням.
The classes are held (take place) on workdays and during weekends.

[archaicos.livejournal.com]

It's better to say: Cars come in different types:... That's the closest meaning here.

[cxielamiko.livejournal.com]

бывалый (old partizip, now it's an adjective) means the man, who has done something many times and has expierence.
Но нет, не мо́жет быва́лый солда́т смири́ться с однообра́зным, споко́йным тече́нием свое́й жи́зни.
Old, expierenced soldier can't reconcile with monotonous, quiet course of life.

http://search.ruscorpora.ru/search.xml?mycorp=&mysent=&mysize=&dpp=&spp=&spd=&t=100&text=lexform&mode=main&sort=gr_tagging&req=%E1%FB%E2%E0%EB%FB%E9

[zeqfreed.livejournal.com]

Он часто бывает чем-то расстроенным.
He often seems to be disappointed by something.

— Он приходит сюда каждый день к 10 часам?
— Обычно да. Бывает, что и совсем не приходит.

— Does he come here every day by 10 o'clock?
— Usually. But it happens, he doesn't come at all.

Раньше я любил кататься на велосипеде. Бывало, я катался целыми днями.
I loved to ride a cycle before. There were whole days I spent cycling.

[creiz.livejournal.com]

One of the main semantic elements of бывать is a kind of repetitiveness of action. Almost all of the examples above show that.

And there's one more particular usage of this verb - in the same function as English 'used to' and 'would':
Он, бывало, часто приходил сюда. - He used to come here ofter.
Бывало, ее бабушка пекла ей печенье, когда она к ней заглядывала - Her grandmother would make biscuits every time she came over.

[david-us.livejournal.com]

It seems that it is used almost as if it were an adverb - especially in the two sentences you have constructed.

[creiz.livejournal.com]

Yeah, kind of. It's a parenthesis in my examples. And theoretically it can be interchanged with раньше in many cases, which doesn't really affect the meaning but gives a phrase more... "faceless", emotionless kind of feeling, I'd say.

Oh, it's OK to use it in present tense as well (as бывает):
Он, бывает, все еще приходит сюда. - He still comes here sometimes.

[spiritrc.livejournal.com]

I'd say that 'бывать' is most closely translated into English 'to happen' in all the meanings. Not in all the cases the English translation looks perfectly English :), but I guess in all the cases it gives the clue. So you can use 'to happen' almost anywhere you see 'бывать':

Бывает, что и палка стреляет (proverb) = It happens that even a stick fires
Я бываю у него в гостях достаточно часто = I happen to visit him often enough
Машины бывают разные - грузовики, легковые, спортивные = Different cars happen: trucks, passenger cars, sport cars
Со мной такого никогда не бывало = Such a thing has never happened to me