Present Forms of Verbs Ending in -ēt and -āt

Present of Verbs Like Redzēt

Level 1

redzēt → redzu, redzi, redz, redzam, redzat, redz. Take off -ēt or -āt, then add -u, -i, nothing, -am, -at, nothing.

How It Works

The pattern.

  • redzēt (to see): redzu, redzi, redz, redzam, redzat, redz
  • dziedāt (to sing): dziedu, dziedi, dzied, dziedam, dziedat, dzied
  • gribēt (to want): gribu, gribi, grib, gribam, gribat, grib

More verbs like these: varēt (can) → varu, var; dzirdēt (to hear) → dzirdu, dzird; mīlēt (to love) → mīlu, mīl. See want to and can.

Tu still ends in -i. Tu redzi, tu dziedi. This is different from the first conjugation, where the tu form usually has no ending (tu nes).

Consonant changes. A few verbs change the last consonant of the stem. Gulēt (to lie, to sleep) → guļu, guli, guļ, guļam, guļat, and sēdēt (to sit) → sēžu, sēdi, sēž: here only the tu form keeps the plain consonant. Mācēt (to know how) changes it everywhere: māku, māki, māk. See consonant changes.

Zināt keeps -a. Zināt (to know) and verbs in -ināt follow the lasīt pattern instead: zinu, zini, zina, zinām, zināt, zina. Notice that jūs zināt looks exactly like the infinitive. Other -ināt verbs work the same way: atgādināt (to remind) → atgādina. See verbs like lasīt.

Which verbs belong here? Not every verb in -ēt or -āt: runāt and spēlēt keep their vowel (runāju, spēlēju); see verbs like runāt. Learn the es form of each new verb: redzu tells you it belongs to this group.

Examples (6)

  1. Es tevi redzu!

    I can see you!

    Redzēt → redzu. Latvian often uses the plain verb where English says "can see".

  2. Vai tu dzirdi mūziku?

    Can you hear the music?

    The tu form ends in -i: dzirdi.

  3. Viņš labi dzied.

    He sings well.

    Dziedāt → dzied, with no ending for viņš.

  4. Mēs redzam jūru.

    We can see the sea.

    Short -am for mēs: redzam.

  5. Viņa zina adresi.

    She knows the address.

    Zināt is the exception that keeps -a: zina.

  6. Bērns guļ.

    The child is sleeping.

    Gulēt → guļ: the l softens to ļ.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding -a to the he, she or they form.

    Viņš redza jūru.
    Viņš redz jūru.

    Verbs like redzēt have no ending in the third person: redz, dzied, grib. Only zināt and other -ināt verbs keep -a.

  • Using a long ā in the mēs form.

    Mēs redzām jūru.
    Mēs redzam jūru.

    This group has short -am and -at: redzam, redzat. The long -ām belongs to lasīt and zināt.

  • Leaving out the -i in the tu form.

    Vai tu redz jūru?
    Vai tu redzi jūru?

    In the third conjugation, the tu form ends in -i: redzi, dziedi, gribi.

How It Connects

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

Present Forms of Verbs Ending in -ēt and -ātLevel 1Present of Verbs Like Redzēt

Learn This First

Verbs like redzēt complete the third conjugation.