Mõistlikele

Mõistlikele is an Estonian grammatical form of the adjective mõistlik, meaning reasonable or sensible. It is the allative plural form, used to indicate the recipient or direction toward a group described by the adjective. In practice, mõistlikele translates roughly as “to sensible people” or “for sensible people,” depending on the sentence structure. The singular allative form would be mõistlikule, and the base adjective remains mõistlik.

In usage, mõistlikele appears when the speaker or writer refers to a group characterized as reasonable, often in contexts of giving advice, instructions, or addressing a discussion. It is typically part of a noun phrase where another noun is understood or omitted: for example, mõistlikele inimesed (to sensible people) or, with ellipsis, лишь mõistlikele (to sensible ones). The form is more common in formal or written Estonian and can carry a tone of rational appeal or appeal to prudent judgment.

Notes on form and variants: as with other Estonian adjectives, mõistlik declines for number and case, so mõistlikele is specifically the allative plural. Other related forms include mõistliku (singular allative) and mõistlik (nominative singular). While mõistlik itself describes the quality, mõistlikele functions as a case-marked recipient phrase rather than a standalone noun.

See also: Estonian adjective declension, allative case, rationality in Estonian usage.