Whole Time Spans

Level 5

Ma töötasin terve päeva means I worked the whole day. A whole span of time is usually genitive, like a whole object.

How It Works

A phrase that says how long something lasted has no ending of its own. It borrows the object cases, and the choice follows the same logic as the object.

1. A whole, complete span → usually genitive. This is common with terve (whole) and kogu (all): Ma töötasin terve päeva. Ta oli haige terve nädala. Kogu suve elasime maal. The nominative is also possible (terve päev), but the genitive is more usual.

2. Number phrases → nominative. Phrases like pool tundi, viis minutit and kaks aastat keep the number in the nominative: Oota viis minutit! Üks is different: like terve, it usually goes into the genitive: Ootasin ühe tunni.

3. The amount is denied → partitive. When ei says that the amount itself was not reached, the phrase goes into the partitive, like an object after negation: Ma ei oodanud isegi viit minutit. (I didn't even wait five minutes.)

Be careful here. If the span is simply the time during which something did not happen, it stays genitive: Ta ei söönud terve päeva midagi. (He didn't eat anything the whole day.)

4. An open, unmeasured amount → plural partitive. Ta võib terveid tunde raamatupoes veeta. (She can spend hours on end in a bookshop.)

Examples (6)

  1. Ma töötasin terve päeva.

    I worked the whole day.

    A complete span: genitive terve päeva.

  2. Ta oli terve nädala haige.

    She was ill for a whole week.

    Nädal → genitive nädala.

  3. Kogu suve elasime maal.

    We lived in the countryside all summer.

    Kogu never changes; suvi → genitive suve.

  4. Ootasin sind pool tundi!

    I waited for you half an hour!

    A number phrase: pool stays nominative.

  5. Ma ei oodanud isegi viit minutit.

    I didn't even wait five minutes.

    The negation denies the amount, so viis → partitive viit.

  6. Ta võib terveid tunde raamatupoes veeta.

    She can spend hours on end in a bookshop.

    An open amount: plural partitive terveid tunde.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the partitive for a completed whole span in a positive sentence.

    Ma töötasin tervet päeva.
    Ma töötasin terve päeva.

    A finished whole span is genitive (or nominative). The partitive is for denied amounts or open plural amounts.

  • Keeping the nominative when the negation denies the amount.

    Ma ei oodanud isegi viis minutit.
    Ma ei oodanud isegi viit minutit.

    Here ei says the amount was never reached, so the phrase takes the partitive, like an object after negation.

How It Connects

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Whole Time SpansLevel 5

Learn This First

A whole time span behaves like a total object.

Words in This Pattern

terve