Loetamine

Loetamine is a noun in Estonian that denotes the act of listing or enumerating items. It can also refer to the process of reciting a sequence of entries, such as items in a catalog, elements in a dataset, or points in a document. The term derives from the verb loetama, meaning to list, enumerate, or read aloud.

Formation and usage: Loetamine is formed with the nominalizing suffix -mine attached to loetama. It is common in formal writing, education, and data presentation to describe the act of presenting items in a sequence, separate from continuous reading.

Examples: In dictionaries and manuals, loetamine signals that items will be presented one by one. In classrooms or talks, it introduces a sequence of points. Example: Loetame järgmised punktid: 1) eeltööd, 2) meetodid, 3) tulemused. Translation: We list the following points: preparation, methods, results.

Related terms: It relates to nimekiri (list) and to notions of listing or enumeration in grammar. In linguistic descriptions, loetamine is contrasted with lugemine (reading aloud) when the emphasis is on enumeration rather than continuous reading.

See also: Enumeration in linguistics; List (nimekiri); Estonian language resources.