Past Tense Verbs

The past tense is formed by introducing the infix -si- between the root of the verb and the regular endings.

If the stem ends in a consonant, -i- must be inserted in the 3rd person. Example: teadma 'to know' - ta teadis (ma teadsin, etc..)

The exception to his rule is envoked when the verb has two syllables, whose root ends in -e, such as olema 'to be' and tulema 'to come'. In such cases the e is changed to i to which you add the regular verb endings, except for the 3rd person singular which is endingless:

The verb minema [to go] is one of those verbs that never seems to follow the rules.

Rääkima - to speak ma rääkisin I spoke sa rääkisid you spoke ta rääkis he/she/it spoke me rääkisime we spoke te rääkisite you (all) spoke nad rääkisid they spoke

Tulema - to come ma tulin I came sa tulid you came ta tuli he/she/it camee me tulime we came te tulite you (all) came nad tulid they came

Minema - to go ma läksin I went sa läksid you went ta läks he/she/it went me läksime we went te läksite you (all) went nad läksid they went