Partitive (Part Form)

Level 1

The partitive (osastav) says "some of it" or "not the whole thing": Ma joon kohvi means "I drink (some) coffee".

How It Works

The partitive answers the questions keda? (whom?) and mida? (what?). Its name comes from "part": it shows that only part of something is involved, or that the amount is open.

1. What the partitive does

  • Some amount: Ma joon kohvi. (I drink coffee.) Coffee has no natural edge, so it takes the partitive. See the partitive for some amount.
  • An unfinished action: Ma loen raamatut. (I am reading a book.) The reading is still going on, so the object is partitive. See the partitive object; a finished action uses the genitive instead.
  • After a number: kaks last (two children). When the number is in its basic form, every number from two up takes the partitive singular.
  • After a negative: Mul ei ole autot. (I don't have a car.) A negative sentence pulls its object into the partitive. See the partitive after negation.
  • With certain verbs: Ma armastan sind. Ma ootan bussi. Some verbs always take the partitive; see verbs that take the partitive.

2. What it looks like in the singular

  • -t: raamat → raamatut, auto → autot, inimene → inimest
  • -d: maa → maad, puu → puud, tee → teed
  • no ending: maja → maja, koer → koera, kohv → kohvi
  • -da on a few pronouns: see → seda, tema → teda, mis → mida, kes → keda

Which ending a word takes depends on its type, so learn the partitive together with the nominative and genitive, as a dictionary lists them. Partitive endings goes through the patterns in detail. The plural has its own forms, such as raamatuid and lapsi; see the plural partitive.

3. Why it matters
The partitive often changes the meaning, not just the form. Ma lugesin raamatut means "I was reading a book", while Ma lugesin raamatu läbi means "I read the whole book". Estonian has no articles, so this case does some of the work that "a", "some" and "the whole" do in English.

Examples (6)

  1. Ma joon hommikul kohvi.

    I drink coffee in the morning.

    Word by Word: I drink in-the-morning coffee-PART.

    kohv → kohvi: coffee is an open amount, so it is partitive.

  2. Ma loen raamatut.

    I am reading a book.

    Word by Word: I read book-PART.

    raamat → raamatut: the reading is not finished.

  3. Mul on kaks last.

    I have two children.

    Word by Word: At-me is two child-PART.

    laps → last: numbers from two up take the partitive singular.

  4. Mul ei ole autot.

    I don't have a car.

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

    auto → autot: the negative pulls the owned thing into the partitive.

  5. Ma ootan bussi.

    I am waiting for the bus.

    Word by Word: I wait bus-PART.

    ootama always takes a partitive object.

  6. Üks tass teed, palun.

    A cup of tea, please.

    Word by Word: One cup tea-PART, please.

    tee → teed: an amount word like tass is followed by the partitive.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the nominative or plural after a number.

    Mul on kaks raamatud.
    Mul on kaks raamatut.

    After numbers from two up, Estonian uses the partitive singular, not a plural form. Say kaks raamatut, kolm last.

  • Keeping the basic form of the object in a negative sentence.

    Ma ei näe auto.
    Ma ei näe autot.

    When the verb is negative, the object is always partitive: auto → autot.

  • Using the basic pronoun form after a verb like armastama.

    Ma armastan sina.
    Ma armastan sind.

    armastama always takes the partitive, and the partitive of sina is sind.

How It Connects

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

Partitive (Part Form)Level 1

Learn This First

The singular partitive is often built on the genitive stem.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.