to meet; to come together with someone; to encounter or run into someone; (of parties/people) to hold a meeting

Building blocks

• koht- → root (linked to koht = “place”)

• -u- → reflexive (the action happens mutually, by itself)

• -ma → infinitive ending

So literally kohtuma means: “to come together (in one place)”

How to use it

What to remember

• Whoever you meet takes the Comitative case (ending -ga)

Example

Ma kohtun homme kliendiga

Literally: “I meet tomorrow client-with”

Idiomatically: “I'm meeting a client tomorrow”

Ma - Pronoun - Nominative Singular: "I"
kohtun - Verb - 1st Person Singular, Present Tense: "meet"
homme - Adverb - Indeclinable: "tomorrow"
kliendiga - Noun - Comitative Singular: "with a client"

foresighted; prudent; able to anticipate what is coming and plan for it; showing foresight

Building blocks

• ette- → ahead/forward/in advance (adverb-prefix)

• näge- → root of nägema “to see”

• -lik → adjective ending (turns it into an adjective)

So literally “ettenägelik” means “seeing ahead” → someone who can see what’s coming.

How to use it:

Here is how you use the word “ettenägelik” ⬇️

Example

Ettenägelikul inimesel on alati varuplaan

Literally: “Foresighted-on person-on is always backup-plan”

Idiomatically: “A foresighted person always has a backup plan”

Ettenägelikul – Adjective – Adessive Singular: "foresighted"
inimesel – Noun – Adessive Singular: "person (has)"
on – Verb – 3rd Person Singular, Present Tense: "has / is"
alati – Adverb – Indeclinable: "always"
varuplaan – Noun – Nominative Singular: "a backup plan"

---

to be mistaken; to be wrong; to make a mistake; to lose one's way, to get lost; to stray from the right path

Building blocks

• eksi- → root (idea of going off course, straying)

• -ma → infinitive ending

So literally eksima means: “to go astray”

⚠️ Don't mix up eksima (to go wrong yourself) with eksitama (to lead someone else astray, to mislead)

How to use it

What to remember

• The concrete thing you got wrong takes the Comitative (ending -ga): eksisin nimega, kuupäevaga, numbriga

Example

Ma eksisin sinu nimega

Literally: “I was-mistaken your name-with”

Idiomatically: “I got your name wrong”

Ma - Pronoun - Nominative Singular: "I"
eksisin - Verb - 1st Person Singular, Past Tense: "was mistaken"
sinu - Pronoun - Genitive Singular: "your"
nimega - Noun - Comitative Singular: "with the name"

lazy; idle; unwilling to work or make an effort; (about time, movement) slow, unhurried, sluggish

Building blocks

• laisk → a root adjective—no suffix

So there is nothing to take apart here—the work happens at the end of the word, not inside it.

⚠️ Three base forms to memorise: laisk – laisa – laiska

Don't mix up the family:

• laisk = lazy (adjective)

• laiskus = laziness (noun)

• laisklema = to laze around (verb)

How to use it:

Here is how you use the word “laisk” ⬇️

Example

Laiskadel inimestel on alati hea vabandus

Literally: “Lazy-on people-on is always good excuse”

Idiomatically: “Lazy people always have a good excuse”

Laiskadel - Adjective - Adessive Plural: "lazy"
inimestel - Noun - Adessive Plural: "people"
on - Verb - 3rd Person Singular, Present Tense: "is/have"
alati - Adverb - Indeclinable: "always"
hea - Adjective - Nominative Singular: "good"
vabandus - Noun - Nominative Singular: "excuse"

---

to interpret; to explain or understand the meaning of something; to give a particular reading to words, actions, or events; (about art:) to render a work in one's own way

Building blocks

• tõlgen- → root, from tõlge (”translation”) or tõlk (”interpreter”)

• -da- → builds the verb stem — not causative here

• -ma → infinitive ending

So literally tõlgendama means: “to work out the meaning of something”

How to use it

What to remember

• What you interpret is in the Partitive case (third base form)

• When you interpret X as Y, the Y takes the Essive ending -na (nõusolekuna = “as agreement”)

Example

Kohtunik tõlgendas seadust rangelt

Literally: “The judge interpreted the law strictly”

Idiomatically: “The judge interpreted the law strictly”

Kohtunik - Noun - Nominative Singular: "The judge"
tõlgendas - Verb - 3rd Person Singular, Past Tense: "interpreted"
seadust - Noun - Partitive Singular: "the law"
rangelt - Adverb: "strictly"

Ta tõlgendas mu vaikimist nõusolekuna

Literally: “He/She interpreted my silence agreement-as”

Idiomatically: “He/She took my silence as agreement"

Ta - Pronoun - Nominative Singular: "He/She"
tõlgendas - Verb - 3rd Person Singular, Past Tense: "interpreted"
mu - Pronoun - Genitive Singular: "my"
vaikimist - Noun - Partitive Singular: "silence"
nõusolekuna - Noun - Essive Singular: "as agreement"

probable; likely; plausible; something that can be expected to happen or be true with high probability

Building blocks

• tõe- → genitive stem of tõde — “truth”

• -näo- → genitive stem of nägu — “face/look/appearance”

• -line → adjective suffix — “having the quality of”

So literally tõenäoline means: “having the look of truth” → likely to be true

How to use it:

Here is how you use the word “tõenäoline” ⬇️

Example

Kõige tõenäolisem seletus on tavaliselt kõige lihtsam.

Literally: “Most probable explanation is usually most simple.”

Idiomatically: “The most likely explanation is usually the simplest.”

Kõige - Adverb - Indeclinable: “most”
tõenäolisem - Adjective - Comparative, Nominative Singular: “more probable”
seletus - Noun - Nominative Singular: “explanation”
on - Verb - 3rd Person Singular, Present: “is”
tavaliselt - Adverb, Indeclinable: “usually”
kõige - Adverb - Indeclinable: “most”
lihtsam - Adjective - Comparative, Nominative Singular: “simpler / simplest”

---

to finish; to end; to complete; to conclude; to bring something to an end; (about school:) to graduate

Building blocks

• lõpe- → from the noun lõpp (end)

• -ta- → causative suffix (to make something happen)

• -ma → infinitive ending

So literally, “lõpetama” means “to make something end/to bring to an end.”

How to use it

What to remember

What you finish takes the Genitive case (second base form)

Example

Ma lõpetasin raamatu eile õhtul.

Literally: “I finished book yesterday evening-on.”

Idiomatically: “I finished the book last night."

Ma - Pronoun - Nominative Singular: "I"
lõpetasin - Verb - 1st Person Singular, Past Tense: "finished"
raamatu - Noun - Genitive Singular (total object): "book"
eile - Adverb - Indeclinable: "yesterday"
õhtul - Noun - Adessive Singular: "in the evening"

careful; cautious; acting with care to avoid danger, risk or mistakes; wary, prudent

Building blocks

• ette- → “ahead/forward/in advance”

• vaat- → verb stem of vaatama (“to look, to watch”)

• -lik → adjective-forming suffix (“-ful”, characterized by)

So literally ettevaatlik means: “looking ahead” → careful

How to use it:

Here is how you use the word “ettevaatlik” ⬇️

What to remember

What you are careful with is in the Comitative case (ending -ga)

Example

Ole terava noaga ettevaatlik!

Literally: “Be sharp knife-with careful!”

Idiomatically: “Be careful with the sharp knife!”

Ole - Verb - 2nd Person Singular, Imperative mood: "Be"
terava - Adjective - Genitive Singular: "sharp"
noaga - Noun - Comitative Singular: "with (the) knife"
ettevaatlik - Adjective - Nominative Singular: "careful"

---

to characterize; to describe the traits, nature, or character of someone or something; to be typical or representative of

Building blocks

• iseloomu- → stem of iseloom (”character, nature”)

• -sta- → verb-forming suffix (”to provide with / to treat as”)

• -ma → infinitive ending

So literally iseloomustama means: “to give character to” → to characterize

How to use it

What to remember

What or whom you characterize is in the Partitive case (third base form)

Example

Kuidas sa iseloomustaksid oma sõpra?

Literally: “How you would-characterize your friend?”

Idiomatically: “How would you describe your friend?"

Kuidas - Adverb - Indeclinable: "How"
sa - Pronoun - Nominative Singular: "you"
iseloomustaksid - Verb - 2nd Person Singular, Conditional Mood: "would characterize"
oma - Pronoun - Indeclinable: "your own"
sõpra - Noun - Partitive Singular: "friend"

creative; inventive; able to bring something new into being; marked by originality and imagination

Building blocks

• loo- → stem of looma (”to create”)

• -v → present participle ending (turns the verb into an adjective)

So literally loov means: “creating” → one who creates

⚠ loov vs loominguline: if you mean inventive by nature (a person, a mind), use loov; if you mean arts- or creative-work-related (a field, an activity), use loominguline.

How to use it:

Here is how you use the word “loov” ⬇️

Example

Loov inimene näeb tavalistes asjades uusi võimalusi.

Literally: “Creative person sees ordinary-in things-in new possibilities.”

Idiomatically: “A creative person sees new possibilities in ordinary things.”

Loov - Adjective - Nominative Singular: "creative"
inimene - Noun - Nominative Singular: "person"
näeb - Verb - 3rd Person Singular, Present Tense: "sees"
tavalistes - Adjective - Inessive Plural: "in ordinary"
asjades - Noun - Inessive Plural: "in things"
uusi - Adjective - Partitive Plural: "new"
võimalusi - Noun - Partitive Plural: "possibilities"

---

to develop; to evolve; to grow; to progress; to advance; (of a person, skill, situation, technology, or living thing:) to change and become more developed over time — by itself

Building blocks

• are- → root (noun areng “development”)

• -ne- → intransitive — the subject changes by itself

• -ma → infinitive ending

So literally arenema means: “to come into development on its own”

⚠ Don't confuse it with arendama. arenema = something develops (on its own). arendama = to develop something (you act on it).

How to use it

What to remember

Two patterns are worth knowing:

• develop into something → Translative case (-ks): Röövik areneb liblikaks — “The caterpillar develops into a butterfly”

• develop from something → Elative case (-st): Röövikust areneb liblikas — “A butterfly develops from a caterpillar”

Example

Röövik areneb ilusaks liblikaks

Literally: “Caterpillar develops beautiful-into butterfly-into”

Idiomatically: “The caterpillar develops into a beautiful butterfly"

Röövik - Noun - Nominative Singular: "the caterpillar"
areneb - Verb - 3rd Person Singular, Present Tense: "develops"
ilusaks - Adjective - Translative Singular: "into a beautiful"
liblikaks - Noun - Translative Singular: "into a butterfly"

Röövikust areneb ilus liblikas

Literally: “Caterpillar-from develops beautiful butterfly”

Idiomatically: “A beautiful butterfly develops from a caterpillar”

Röövikust - Noun - Elative Singular: "from the caterpillar"
areneb - Verb - 3rd Person Singular, Present Tense: "develops"
ilus - Adjective - Nominative Singular: "beautiful"
liblikas - Noun - Nominative Singular: "butterfly"

memorable; that stays in the mind; leaving a lasting impression; striking, unforgettable

Building blocks

• meelde → “into the mind” (illative of meel = mind/memory)

• jää- → stem of the verb jääma (to stay/remain)

• -v → present participle ending (makes “staying”)

It comes from the phrase meelde jääma = "to stick in the mind/to be remembered". So literally meeldejääv means: "staying into the mind" → memorable.

How to use it:

Here is how you use the word “meeldejääv” ⬇️

Examples

Me veetsime mägedes meeldejääva nädalavahetuse.

Literally: “We spent mountains-in memorable weekend.”

Idiomatically: “We spent a memorable weekend in the mountains.”

Me - Pronoun - Nominative Plural: "We"
veetsime - Verb - 1st Person Plural, Past Tense: "spent"
mägedes - Noun - Inessive Plural: "in the mountains"
meeldejääva - Adjective - Genitive Singular: "memorable"
nädalavahetuse - Noun - Genitive Singular: "weekend"

---

to support; to back; to give support to; to stand by someone; (physically:) to prop up, to hold up; (about an idea or proposal:) to endorse, to be in favour of

Building blocks

• toe- → root from the noun tugi (support, prop)

• -ta- → causative (turns it into “to give/to cause support”)

• -ma → infinitive ending

So literally toetama means: “to give support/to prop up”

How to use it

What to remember

What or whom you support is in the Partitive case (third base form).

Example

Vanemad toetavad oma last rahaliselt.

Literally: “Parents support their child financially.”

Idiomatically: “The parents support their child financially.”

Vanemad — Noun — Nominative Plural: "Parents"
toetavad — Verb — 3rd Person Plural, Present Tense: "support"
oma — Pronoun (reflexive possessive) — Indeclinable: "their (own)"
last — Noun — Partitive Singular: "child"
rahaliselt — Adverb — Indeclinable: "financially"

influential; having a strong effect or impact; powerful; able to shape opinions, decisions or events

Building blocks

• mõju- → root, from the noun mõju (influence, impact, effect)

• -kas → adjective suffix meaning “rich in/having a lot of”

So literally mõjukas means: “having (a lot of) influence”

⚠️ Don’t confuse mõjukas with mõjuv: a person or force is mõjukas (has power to influence), but an argument or reason is mõjuv (compelling, convincing).

How to use it:

Here is how you use the word “mõjukas” ⬇️

Examples

Tema arvamus oli koosolekul väga mõjukas.

Literally: “His/Her opinion was meeting-on very influential.”

Idiomatically: “His/Her opinion carried a lot of weight at the meeting.”

Tema - Pronoun - Genitive Singular: "His/Her"
arvamus - Noun - Nominative Singular: "opinion"
oli - Verb	- 3rd Person Singular, Past Tense: "was"
koosolekul - Noun - Adessive Singular: "at the meeting"
väga - Adverb - Indeclinable: "very"
mõjukas - Adjective - Nominative Singular: "influential"

---

to contain; to include; to hold within; to have something as a part or ingredient; to encompass

Building blocks

• sisal- → root, related to sisald- / sisu (content, substance, interior)

• -da- → verb stem extension

• -ma → infinitive ending

So literally sisaldama means: “to have substance/content inside”

How to use it

What to remember

What is contained is in the Partitive case (third base form)

Example

See raamat sisaldab palju kasulikku teavet.

Literally: “This book contains much useful-of information.”

Idiomatically: “This book contains a lot of useful information.”

See – Pronoun – Nominative Singular: "This"
raamat – Noun – Nominative Singular: "book"
sisaldab – Verb – 3rd Person Singular, Present Tense: "contains"
palju – Adverb – Indeclinable: "much/a lot of"
kasulikku – Adjective – Partitive Singular: "useful"
teavet – Noun – Partitive Singular: "information"

short-sighted; near-sighted; unable to see far; (figuratively) lacking foresight; failing to consider long-term consequences

Building blocks

• lühi- → root from lühike (short)

• näge- → root from nägema (to see)

• -lik → adjective-forming suffix (”having the quality of”)

So literally lühinägelik means: “having the quality of short-seeing”

How to use it:

Here is how you use the word “lühinägelik” ⬇️

Examples

Valitsuse otsus oli lühinägelik – nad ei mõelnud tulevastele põlvkondadele.

Literally: “"The government's decision was short-sighted – they didn't think future-onto generations-onto.”

Idiomatically: “The government made a short-sighted decision — no thought for future generations.”

Valitsuse  –  Noun – Genitive Singular: "The government's"
otsus  –  Noun – Nominative Singular: "decision"
oli  –  Verb – 3rd Person Singular, Past Tense: "was"
lühinägelik  –  Adjective – Nominative Singular: "short-sighted"
nad  –  Pronoun – Nominative Plural: "they"
ei mõelnud  –  Verb – 3rd Person Plural, Past Tense, Negation: "didn't think"
tulevastele  –  Adjective – Allative Plural: "for future"
põlvkondadele  –  Noun – Allative Plural: "for generations"

Building blocks

• kinni- → root related to "firm / fixed / tight" (connected to kinnine — closed)

• -ta- → causative suffix (makes something happen)

• -ma → infinitive ending

So literally kinnitama means: "to make something fixed/firm"

How to use it

Example

Palun kinnitage oma e-posti aadress

Literally: “Please confirm your e-mail address”

Idiomatically: “Please verify/confirm your email address”

Palun - Adverb — Indeclinable: "please"
kinnitage - Verb — 2nd Person Plural, Formal Imperative: "confirm"
oma - Pronoun — Genitive, Reflexive: "your (own)"
e-posti - Noun — Genitive Singular: "of email"
aadress - Noun — Nominative Singular: "address"

depressing; disheartening; something that brings you down emotionally; that which causes a feeling of heaviness or hopelessness

Building blocks

• masen- → root (base meaning: to weigh down/oppress)

• da- → verb infinitive ending (masendama = to depress)

• -v → adjective forming ending (turns the verb into "that which depresses")

So literally "masendav" means "that which is depressing/that which weighs you down."

How to use it:

Here is how you use the word “masendav” ⬇️

Examples

See film oli masendav, aga väga hea

Literally: “That film was depressing but very good”

Idiomatically: “That film was depressing but really good”

See - Pronoun - Nominative Singular: "That/This"
film - Noun - Nominative Singular: "film"
oli - Verb - 3rd Person Singular, Past Tense: "was"
masendav - Adjective - Nominative Singular: "depressing"
aga - Conjunction - Indeclinable: "but"
väga - Adverb - Indeclinable: "very"
hea - Adjective - Nominative Singular: "good"

Building blocks

• arva- → root related to opinion/guessing (arvamus – opinion)

• -ma → infinitive ending

So literally arvama means: "to form an opinion"

⚠️ arvama vs. mõtlema: if you can replace "think" with "believe" or "reckon", use arvama — if it's more like "ponder" or "think about", use mõtlema.

How to use it

What to remember

• The thing you think or believe is expressed as an et-clause (a "that"-clause)

Example

Arvan, et see on hea mõte

Literally: “I-think that this is good idea”

Idiomatically: “I think this is a good idea”

Arvan - Verb – 1st Person Singular, Present Tense: "I think"
et - Conjunction – Indeclinable: "that"
see - Pronoun – Nominative Singular: "this"
on - Verb – 3rd Person Singular, Present Tense: "is"
hea - Adjective – Nominative Singular: "good"
mõte - Noun – Nominative Singular: "idea"

 polite; courteous; well-mannered; decent

Building blocks

• viis → way/manner (as in a way of doing things)

• -aka- → adjectival suffix (implies having the quality of)

• -s → adjective forming ending

So literally "viisakas" means "having good manners" — someone who conducts themselves in the right way.

How to use it:

Here is how you use the word “viisakas” ⬇️

Examples

Lapsed õpetati olema viisakad võõraste inimestega

Literally: “Children were-taught to-be polite strangers people-with”

Idiomatically: “The children were taught to be polite to strangers”

Lapsed - Noun - Nominative Plural: "children"
õpetati - Verb - Impersonal Past: "were taught"
olema - Verb - Infinitive: "to be"
viisakad - Adjective - Nominative Plural: "polite"
võõraste - Adjective - Genitive Plural: "of strangers/strangers'"
inimestega - Noun - Comitative Plural: "with people"