-am / -ām After Perception Verbs

I Saw Him Coming: -am

Level 5

To say I saw him coming, Latvian puts the person in the accusative and the action in -am: Es redzēju viņu nākam. The -am form never changes.

How It Works

1. The pattern. perception verb + the person or thing (accusative) + the -am form:

  • Es redzēju viņu nākam. (I saw him coming.)
  • Dzirdēju putnus dziedam. (I heard the birds singing.)
  • Vai tu dzirdi kādu klauvējam pie durvīm? (Do you hear someone knocking at the door?)

2. Forming it. Take the es form of the present, drop the ending, and add -am: nākt → nāku → nākam, klauvēt → klauvēju → klauvējam. Some third-conjugation verbs take -ām: lasīt → lasām, rakstīt → rakstām. Reflexive verbs add -amies or -āmies: spēlēties → spēlējamies, sisties → sitamies.

3. It never changes. The -am form is the same for any person or number: redzēju viņu nākam, redzēju viņas nākam, redzēju bērnus nākam.

4. -ot works too. After perception verbs, the -ot form is also used: Dzirdēju putnus dziedot. The -am form is the classic choice here.

5. After šķist and likties. The -am form also follows šķist and likties (to seem): Viņš šķita mūs nedzirdam (He did not seem to hear us).

Watch out: do not copy the English infinitive (I saw him come). Standard Latvian uses -am, or a clause: Es redzēju, kā viņš nāk.

Examples (6)

  1. Es redzēju viņu nākam.

    I saw him coming.

    Word by Word: I saw him coming.

  2. Dzirdēju putnus dziedam.

    I heard the birds singing.

    Word by Word: Heard birds singing.

  3. Vai tu dzirdi kādu klauvējam pie durvīm?

    Do you hear someone knocking at the door?

    Word by Word: Q you hear someone knocking at door?

  4. Es pamanīju viņu lasām manu vēstuli.

    I noticed him reading my letter.

    Word by Word: I noticed him reading my letter.

    Lasīt takes -ām: lasām.

  5. Mēs redzējām bērnus spēlējamies dārzā.

    We saw the children playing in the garden.

    Word by Word: We saw children playing in-garden.

    Spēlēties is reflexive, so the form is spēlējamies.

  6. Viņa juta sirdi strauji sitamies.

    She felt her heart beating fast.

    Word by Word: She felt heart fast beating.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the infinitive after a perception verb, as in English.

    Es redzēju viņu nākt.
    Es redzēju viņu nākam.

    English says 'I saw him come'. Standard Latvian uses the -am form here, not the infinitive.

  • Confusing -am with the -ams passive participle.

    Es redzēju viņu nākams.
    Es redzēju viņu nākam.

    Nākams is a different participle that means 'coming, next'. After redzēt you need the unchanging nākam.

  • Dropping the reflexive ending. Intended meaning: I heard the door closing.

    Es dzirdēju durvis aizveram.
    Es dzirdēju durvis aizveramies.

    A door closes by itself, so Latvian uses the reflexive aizvērties: Durvis aizveras. Its -am form is aizveramies. Aizveram comes from aizvērt, to close something, so it cannot describe the door itself closing.

How It Connects

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

-am / -ām After Perception VerbsLevel 5I Saw Him Coming: -am

Learn This First

-am follows verbs of seeing and hearing.

Words in This Pattern

redzētdzirdētjustpamanīt