tuleb + da-Infinitive

Having to (Tuleb)

Level 3

Mul tuleb homme vara tõusta means I have to get up early tomorrow. Tuleb never changes for the person.

How It Works

Tulema means to come, but tuleb with a da-infinitive means has to. It works like on vaja: there is no subject, and the verb is always third person singular.

  • Present: Mul tuleb homme vara tõusta. (I have to get up early tomorrow.)
  • Past: Mul tuli terve tund bussi oodata. (I had to wait for the bus for a whole hour.)
  • No person: a general rule or instruction: Enne sõitu tuleb pilet osta.

Compare it with pidama: Ma pean tõusma and Mul tuleb tõusta mean nearly the same. Pidama has a subject and the ma-infinitive, while tuleb uses the adessive and the da-infinitive. Tuleb often sounds like a rule or an instruction.

Object case: because the sentence has no subject, a whole object is in the nominative: Teil tuleb laud ära koristada. Arve tuleb maksta kuu lõpuks. A partial object is still partitive: Bussi tuli oodata.

Negative: to say someone does not have to do something, use ei pea or pole vaja. Ei tule appears mostly in formal instructions and means should not: Neid kahte sõna ei tule segi ajada.

Examples (6)

  1. Mul tuleb homme vara tõusta.

    I have to get up early tomorrow.

    Word by Word: at-me comes tomorrow early to-rise

    The person is in the adessive (mul), and tõusta is the da-infinitive.

  2. Seda tuleb kohe teha.

    This has to be done right away.

    No person is named. Without a finishing word such as ära, seda stays partitive. With ära the whole object is nominative: See tuleb kohe ära teha.

  3. Enne sõitu tuleb pilet osta.

    You have to buy a ticket before the trip.

    The whole object pilet is in the nominative.

  4. Teil tuleb laud ära koristada.

    You need to clear the table.

    Laud is a whole object in the nominative.

  5. Mul tuli terve tund bussi oodata.

    I had to wait for the bus for a whole hour.

    The past form is tuli. Ootama takes a partitive object: bussi.

  6. Kui maas on lumi, tuleb ettevaatlikult sõita.

    When there is snow on the ground, you have to drive carefully.

Common Mistakes

  • Making the person the subject of tulema.

    Ma tulen homme vara tõusta.
    Mul tuleb homme vara tõusta.

    In this meaning tulema has no subject. The person goes in the adessive, and the verb stays tuleb.

  • Using the ma-infinitive after tuleb.

    Mul tuleb homme vara tõusma.
    Mul tuleb homme vara tõusta.

    Tuleb takes the da-infinitive. The ma-infinitive belongs with pidama: Ma pean tõusma.

  • Putting a whole object in the genitive.

    Enne sõitu tuleb pileti osta.
    Enne sõitu tuleb pilet osta.

    A sentence with tuleb has no subject, so a whole object takes the nominative.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

tuleb + da-InfinitiveLevel 3Having to (Tuleb)

Learn This First

tuleb works like on vaja.

Words in This Pattern

tulema