Vocab: silma paistma

to stand out

to stand out; to catch the eye; to be visible, and noticeable; to stand out, to distinguish oneself from others

Building blocks

• silma – from "silm” meaning “eye”

• paistma – "to shine," "to appear," or "to stand out"

Together, "silma paistma" literally translates to "to shine in the eye" but is used idiomatically to mean "to stand out" or "to catch the eye."

How to use it

• Describing Someone's Outstanding Qualities or Achievements:

  • Ta paistis konkursil silma oma erakordse häälega.

    • Translation: She stood out in the competition with her exceptional voice.

• Noticing Something Distinct in Appearance:

  • See maja paistab silma oma erksa värviga.

    • Translation: That house stands out with its bright color.

---

What to remember when using the compound verb “silma paistma”:

• What you stand out with is in the Comitative case (ending -ga)

See this in use ⬇️

Examples

Õpilane paistis silma oma kiire otsustusvõimega

Literally: “Student stood out his/her quick decicion-making-ability-with”

Idiomatically: “The student stood out with his/her quick decision-making ability”

Õpilane - Noun - Nominative Sg, "Student"
paistis silma - Compound Verb - 3P Past Sg, "stood out"
oma - Pronoun - Genitive Sg, "his/her"
kiire - Adjective - Genitive Sg, "quick"
otsustusvõimega - Noun - Comitative Sg, "with decicion-making ability"