kus / kust / kuhu
Where Questions
English uses one word, where, but Estonian uses three: kus (where at), kust (where from) and kuhu (where to). Kus sa elad? Kust sa tuled? Kuhu sa lähed?
How It Works
Every Estonian place word comes in three directions, and the question words follow the same pattern.
The three questions
- kus? – where (at)? No movement. Answer: -s or -l: Kus sa elad? – Tartus. (Where do you live? – In Tartu.)
- kust? – where from? Answer: -st or -lt: Kust sa tuled? – Poest. (Where are you coming from? – From the shop.)
- kuhu? – where to? Answer: -sse or -le, or a short form such as kooli: Kuhu sa lähed? – Kooli. (Where are you going? – To school.)
Verbs point the way
Verbs of motion usually need kuhu or kust: minema (go), panema (put) and sõitma (travel) go with kuhu, and tulema (come) often goes with kust. Verbs of being, such as olema and elama (live), go with kus.
Good to know
- Kust sa pärit oled? is the usual way to ask where someone is from.
- In some dialects and old folk songs you may hear kus with a verb of movement. Standard Estonian uses kuhu: Kuhu sa lähed?
- The same three-way pattern appears in siin – siia – siit (here) and seal – sinna – sealt (there).
Examples (6)
- Kus sa elad? – Tallinnas.
Where do you live? – In Tallinn.
Word by Word: where you live – Tallinn-in
- Kust sa tuled?
Where are you coming from?
Word by Word: where-from you come
- Kuhu sa lähed? – Tööle.
Where are you going? – To work.
Word by Word: where-to you go – work-to
- Kus on tualett?
Where is the toilet?
Word by Word: where is toilet
- Kuhu ma selle panen?
Where should I put this?
Word by Word: where-to I this(GEN) put
panema (put) is a movement verb, so it goes with kuhu.
- Kust sa pärit oled?
Where are you from?
Word by Word: where-from you origin are
Common Mistakes
Using kust when you mean "where to".
Kust sa lähed? (meaning "Where are you going?")Kuhu sa lähed?kust asks where someone is coming from. To ask about the place someone is going to, use kuhu.
Using kuhu for a place where something is.
Kuhu sa elad?Kus sa elad?Living somewhere involves no movement, so the question is kus.
How It Connects
Learn This First
The three where-words mirror the three place directions.
Related Patterns
- siin / sealHere and There
siin and seal are the answers to kus: here and there.
Level 1 - siia, siin, siit / sinna, seal, sealtHere, There and Direction
here and there have the same three directions as kus, kust and kuhu.
Level 2 - minema + IllativeGoing to (Minema + Illative)
minema (go) is the most common verb asked about with kuhu.
Level 1 - tulema + ElativeComing from (Tulema + Elative)
tulema (come) is often asked about with kust.
Level 1 - elama + InessiveLiving in (Elama + Inessive)
elama (live) is asked about with kus.
Level 1
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice kus / kust / kuhu in Bubblegum
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