Months and Seasons
Jaanuaris means in January and suvel means in summer. Months end in -s and seasons end in -l.
How It Works
Months take the inessive -s ("in"):
- jaanuar → jaanuaris, veebruar → veebruaris, märts → märtsis, aprill → aprillis
- mai → mais, juuni → juunis, juuli → juulis, august → augustis
- september → septembris, oktoober → oktoobris, november → novembris, detsember → detsembris
Notice that september, oktoober, november and detsember drop their last vowel before the ending: septembris, oktoobris.
Seasons take the adessive -l: kevad → kevadel (in spring), suvi → suvel (in summer), sügis → sügisel (in autumn), talv → talvel (in winter).
Adding a word in front. A describing word agrees with the season: eelmisel suvel (last summer), järgmisel talvel (next winter), sel sügisel (this autumn). With a month, the year goes in the genitive: eelmise aasta mais (in May last year). For the start and end of a month, use alguses and lõpus: juuni alguses, augusti lõpus.
From and until. Use the elative and the terminative: maist septembrini (from May to September).
Every year. The forms suviti and talviti mean "in summers" and "in winters", for habits.
Month names are ordinary nouns, so they are written with a small letter, also in dates: 5. mai. With a day number, the month changes to the adessive instead: 5. mail (on the 5th of May).
Examples (6)
- Mu sünnipäev on mais.
My birthday is in May.
Mai → mais (inessive).
- Talvel on Eestis pime ja külm.
In winter it is dark and cold in Estonia.
- Me sõidame juulis Saaremaale.
We are going to Saaremaa in July.
- Kevadel õitsevad õunapuud.
In spring the apple trees blossom.
- Eelmisel suvel käisime Lätis.
Last summer we visited Latvia.
The describing word agrees: eelmisel suvel.
- Suvepuhkus kestab juunist augustini.
The summer holiday lasts from June to August.
From = elative (juunist), until = terminative (augustini).
Common Mistakes
Using the adessive for a month without a day number.
Ma sündisin jaanuaril.Ma sündisin jaanuaris.A month on its own takes the inessive. The adessive is only for dates with a day number: 5. jaanuaril.
Using the inessive for a season.
Suves käime rannas.Suvel käime rannas.Seasons take the adessive: kevadel, suvel, sügisel, talvel.
Writing the month with a capital letter.
Me kohtume Augustis.Me kohtume augustis.Month names are common nouns in Estonian and are written with a small letter.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Months use the inessive and seasons the adessive.
Related Patterns
- Saying the Date and Year
With a day number, the month switches to the adessive: 3. mail.
Level 2 - Times of Day with -l
Parts of the day also take the adessive: hommikul, õhtul.
Level 2 - Days with -l
Weekdays also take the adessive: esmaspäeval.
Level 1 - Small Letters for Days and Nations
Why jaanuar and suvi are written with a small letter.
Level 1
Words in This Pattern
Practice Months and Seasons in Bubblegum
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