mina / sina / tema / meie / teie / nemad
Personal Pronouns
ma, sa, ta, me, te, nad are the everyday forms. mina, sina, tema, meie, teie, nemad put stress on the person.
How It Works
- ma / mina — I
- sa / sina — you (one person, familiar)
- ta / tema — he, she
- me / meie — we
- te / teie — you (several people, or polite)
- nad / nemad — they
When to use the long form. The long forms carry stress. Use them to contrast people (Mina tulen, aga tema mitte.), when the pronoun stands alone (Kes tahab kohvi? – Mina!) and for emphasis (Sina tegid selle!). The short forms cannot be stressed, so they never stand alone. Both sets are correct in writing.
One word for he and she. Ta on arst can mean he or she is a doctor. See No Gender in Estonian. For a thing, see (it, this) is common, and ta is also used. See This, That and These.
Other cases. Pronouns take case endings like nouns: minu (my), mind (me), minule (to me), minuga (with me). Many of these have short forms too: mu for minu, mul for minul and mulle for minule. See Pronouns in Other Cases and Possessive Pronouns.
Leaving the pronoun out. The verb ending already shows the person, so ma and sa are often dropped: Elan Tartus. See Leaving Out the Pronoun. For choosing between sa and te, see Familiar sina and Polite teie.
Examples (6)
- Ma olen Kati.
I'm Kati.
The short form ma is the everyday choice.
- Kas sa elad Tallinnas?
Do you live in Tallinn?
- Ta töötab koolis.
He works at a school. / She works at a school.
Ta means he or she; only the context tells which.
- Me läheme kinno.
We're going to the cinema.
- Mina jään koju, aga sina lähed poodi.
I'm staying home, but you're going to the shop.
The long forms mina and sina contrast the two people.
- Kes tahab kohvi? – Mina!
Who wants coffee? – Me!
A pronoun that stands alone must be the long form.
Common Mistakes
Answering with a short pronoun on its own.
Kes tahab kohvi? – Ma!Kes tahab kohvi? – Mina!Short forms such as ma and sa are unstressed and cannot stand alone. A one-word answer needs the long form.
Using the subject form as an object.
Ta näeb ma.Ta näeb mind.ma and mina are only for the subject. In this sentence the object is mind, the partitive form. Other roles use other cases.
How It Connects
Related Patterns
- sina / teieFamiliar Sina and Polite Teie
Choose between the familiar and the polite word for you.
Level 1 - Leaving Out ma and saLeaving Out the Pronoun
The verb ending often makes ma and sa unnecessary.
Level 2 - Pronouns in Other Cases
The same pronouns with case endings.
Level 2 - minu / sinu / temaPossessive Pronouns
The genitive forms minu, sinu, tema mean my, your, his or her.
Level 1 - No Gender in Estonian
Why ta covers both he and she.
Level 1 - -n / -d / -b / -me / -te / -vadPersonal Endings
Each pronoun has its own verb ending.
Level 1
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice mina / sina / tema / meie / teie / nemad in Bubblegum
Poppy, your AI tutor, writes Estonian lessons at your level. Tap any grammar point in a lesson to see its full explanation.
