Vocab: heaks kiitma

to approve

to approve, to recognize something as right or appropriate

Building blocks

• heaks - from the word "hea" (good) but with the "-ks" ending which indicates the translative case.

• kiitma - to praise

Usually, the meanings of compound verbs are just a combination of the adverb and the verb’s meaning.

By saying "heaks kiitma," it doesn't just mean "good praising" (which is a more literal translation based on individual words). Instead, it focuses on the idea of something being approved and becoming good as a result (to praise as good.)

How to use it

1. Approval:

   • "Juhatus kiitis tema ettepaneku heaks." (The board approved his proposal.)

2. Acknowledging a Decision or Action as Positive:

   • "Politsei kiitis tema otsuse heaks." (The police approved of his decision.)

3. Accepting Something as Good or Satisfactory:

   • "Arst kiitis tema tervisliku seisundi heaks." (The doctor approved of his healthy condition.)

Example

Ungari parlament kiitis heaks Rootsi NATO-ga liitumise

Literally: “Hungarian parliament approved Sweden’s NATO-with accesion”

Idiomatically: “The Hungarian parliament approved Sweden's accession to NATO”

Ungari - Noun - Genitive Sg, "Hungarian"
parlament - Noun - Nominative Sg, "parliament"
kiitis heaks - Compound verb - 3P Past Sg, "approved"
Rootsi - Noun - Genitive Sg, "Sweden's"
NATO-ga - Abbreviation - Comitative Sg, "NATO with"
liitumise - Noun - Genitive Sg "accession"