Module 08 · Past, future, prefixes · Pagātne, nākotne, priedēkļi · Level A2
Prefixes and prepositions I: direction of motion
Priedēkļi un prievārdi I
Almost all Latvian prefixes are the same words as prepositions. A verb's prefix and the preposition in front of a noun often echo each other: ie-iet ie-kšā, iz-iet no, aiz-iet uz. Once you understand the prefix, you understand the preposition too.
| Prefix | Meaning | Verb | Matching preposition |
|---|---|---|---|
| ie- | inward | ieiet (to go in), ienākt, ielikt, iebraukt | (iekšā "inside"), uz + acc. |
| iz- | outward; completion | iziet (to go out), izbraukt, iznākt, izlasīt (to read through) | no + gen. |
| aiz- | leaving, going behind | aiziet (to leave), aizbraukt (to drive away), aizvērt (to close), aizmirst | uz + acc.; aiz + gen. |
| at- | arrival here; back | atnākt (to arrive), atbraukt (to arrive by vehicle), atdot (to give back), atvērt (to open) | no + gen. (from where) |
| uz- | upward; onto a surface; a single occurrence | uzkāpt (to climb up), uzlikt (to put on), uzrakstīt (to write down), uzdot | uz + gen. (on what) |
| no- | downward; off a surface; completion | nokāpt (to climb down), noņemt (to take off), nolikt, nopirkt (to buy) | no + gen. |
| pie- | approach, attachment | pienākt (to approach), piebraukt, pielikt (to add), piezvanīt | pie + gen. |
| pār- | across; over- | pāriet (to cross), pārbraukt, pārcelties (to move house), pārdot | pāri + dat. |
| ap- | around; about- | apiet (to go around), apskatīt (to look around), apciemot (to visit) | ap + acc. |
| sa- | together; con- | sanākt (to gather), satikt (to meet), salikt (to put together), saprast | ar |
| pa- | a little; slightly; completion | paiet (to walk a while / to pass), pagaidīt (to wait a bit), pateikt (to say), palīdzēt | pa + acc. |
Motion "there — from there"
| Where to / from | Verb | Example |
|---|---|---|
| into the room | ieiet | Es ieeju istabā. |
| out of the room | iziet | Es izeju no istabas. |
| to leave (from here) | aiziet | Viņš aizgāja uz darbu. |
| to arrive (to here) | atnākt | Viņa atnāca mājās. |
| to approach | pienākt | Pienāc pie manis! |
| to pass by | paiet garām | Autobuss pabrauca garām. |
A prefix changes the aspect
Without a prefix the verb names a process; with a prefix it names a result: lasīt (to read) → izlasīt (to finish reading), rakstīt → uzrakstīt (to write down), ēst → apēst (to eat up), dzert → izdzert (to drink up), pirkt → nopirkt (to buy, i.e. complete the purchase), darīt → izdarīt (to get done), mācīties → iemācīties (to learn, master). This works much like an English phrasal verb that adds a completed result to a plain verb — read vs. read through, eat vs. eat up, drink vs. drink up — except in Latvian the "particle" is fused onto the verb as a prefix rather than standing after it.
Exercise
Pick the right prefix: 1) He went out of the house. 2) I read the book (through). 3) Come here! 4) We moved to Riga.
Answers
1) Viņš izgāja no mājas. 2) Es izlasīju grāmatu. 3) Pienāc šurp! 4) Mēs pārcēlāmies uz Rīgu.
Open the lesson in the trainer — with exercises and a “done” mark →Module test 08