Impersonal Pluperfect
Laud oli kaetud means the table had been laid. Use oli plus the -tud form for something done by an unnamed person before another past event.
How It Works
Use oli plus the -tud form to say that something had been done before another moment in the past, without saying who did it.
- on tehtud (has been done) → oli tehtud (had been done)
- tehti (was done) is the simple impersonal past; oli tehtud puts the action further back.
Kui me jõudsime, oli laud juba kaetud. (When we arrived, the table had already been laid.) Someone laid the table before we came.
The object. The impersonal keeps the object cases of the active sentence. A whole object is in the nominative: Töö oli tehtud. A partitive object stays partitive: Teda oli juba hoiatatud. (He had already been warned.)
Plural. With a plural object, both oli and olid are used: Kõik piletid oli juba müüdud or olid. With olid, the sentence describes the state the tickets were in.
Negative. Use ei olnud or polnud plus -tud: Sellest polnud meile midagi räägitud. (We hadn't been told anything about it.)
Naming the doer. The impersonal hides the doer. If you want to name a person, use an active sentence: Kirja oli kirjutanud Mart. Do not add Mardi poolt to an impersonal sentence.
Examples (5)
- Kui me jõudsime, oli laud juba kaetud.
When we arrived, the table had already been laid.
oli + kaetud: it happened before we arrived.
- Teda oli juba hoiatatud.
He had already been warned.
Word by Word: him had already been-warned
The partitive object teda stays partitive.
- Sellest polnud meile midagi räägitud.
We hadn't been told anything about it.
Negative: polnud + räägitud.
- Kõik piletid oli juba müüdud.
All the tickets had already been sold.
With a plural object, olid is also used.
- Maja oli ehitatud juba enne sõda.
The house had been built before the war.
The builder is not named.
Common Mistakes
Using the impersonal past -ti after oli.
Laud oli kaeti.Laud oli kaetud.After oli, use the -tud form. kaeti is the simple impersonal past and stands alone: Laud kaeti.
Using the active -nud form instead of -tud.
Kui me jõudsime, oli laud juba katnud.Kui me jõudsime, oli laud juba kaetud.katnud is the active form and needs a doer: Ema oli laua katnud. Without a doer, use kaetud.
Naming a specific person with poolt.
Kiri oli kirjutatud Mardi poolt.Kirja oli kirjutanud Mart.The impersonal hides the doer. To name a specific person, use an active sentence.
How It Connects
Learn This First
The impersonal pluperfect is oli plus -tud.
Related Patterns
- Impersonal Past (-ti/-di)Impersonal Past
The simple past impersonal: tehti.
Level 3 - -tud Form
The participle used after oli.
Level 3 - Is Done or Has Been Done
How oli/olid + -tud can also describe a resulting state.
Level 5 - By (poolt) in Formal Writing
Why poolt with a specific person is avoided in impersonal sentences.
Level 5
Words in This Pattern
Practice Impersonal Pluperfect in Bubblegum
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