mul ei ole

Not Having (Mul Ei Ole)

Level 1

"I don't have a car" is Mul ei ole autot. The thing owned changes to the partitive: auto → autot.

How It Works

1. The verb
on → ei ole or pole. Both are standard Estonian; pole is just shorter. See ei ole and pole.
Mul ei ole autot. = Mul pole autot.

2. The thing owned goes into the partitive

  • Mul on auto. → Mul ei ole autot.
  • Meil on koer. → Meil ei ole koera.
  • Tal on aega. → Tal pole aega.
  • Plural: Mul on lapsed. → Mul ei ole lapsi. See the plural partitive.

This is not special to having. A negative sentence always pulls its object into the partitive: Ma ei näe autot.

3. Questions and the past

  • Kas sul pole võtit? (Don't you have a key?)
  • Past: Mul ei olnud aega or Mul polnud aega (I didn't have time).

4. Only one negative word
pole already contains ei, so never say *ei pole. With ei, the verb uses its plain stem ole: ei ole, never *ei on. See also mul on and the partitive.

Examples (6)

  1. Mul ei ole autot.

    I don't have a car.

    Word by Word: At-me not is car-PART.

    auto → autot.

  2. Tal pole aega.

    He doesn't have time.

    Word by Word: At-him isn't time-PART.

    pole is the short form of ei ole.

  3. Meil ei ole koera.

    We don't have a dog.

    Word by Word: At-us not is dog-PART.

    koer → koera.

  4. Kas sul pole võtit?

    Don't you have a key?

    Word by Word: Q at-you isn't key-PART?

    võti → võtit.

  5. Neil pole raha.

    They don't have money.

    Word by Word: At-them isn't money-PART.

    raha looks the same in the partitive.

  6. Mul ei ole lapsi.

    I don't have children.

    Word by Word: At-me not is children-PART.

    laps → lapsi: the plural partitive.

Common Mistakes

  • Keeping the basic form of the thing owned.

    Mul ei ole auto.
    Mul ei ole autot.

    After a negative, the thing owned is always partitive: autot.

  • Putting ei before pole.

    Mul ei pole aega.
    Mul pole aega.

    pole already means "is not". Use either ei ole or pole, never both.

  • Using on after ei.

    Mul ei on aega.
    Mul ei ole aega.

    After ei, the verb takes its plain stem: ei ole.

How It Connects

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

mul ei oleLevel 1Not Having (Mul Ei Ole)

Learn This First

Not having negates mul on and puts the thing in the partitive.

Words in This Pattern

poleolema