Teenindavad

Teenindavad is an Estonian word form derived from the verb teenindama, meaning to serve or to attend to customers. It most commonly appears as the third-person plural present tense form: nad teenindavad kliente means “they serve customers.” It can also function as a present active participle in attributive phrases referring to entities that provide service, for example teenindavad töötajad meaning “service staff” or “staff who serve.”

In usage, teenindavad is frequent in discussions of the service industry, customer service, and occupational groupings within retail, hospitality, healthcare, and other service-oriented fields. It appears in sentences describing actions (they serve) as well as in noun phrases where the qualifier denotes the role of those performing the service. Related terms in Estonian include teenindus (service), teenindussektor (service sector), and teenindusettevõte (service company).

Etymology and grammar: the form comes from the root teenind- of teenindama and follows standard Estonian verb endings. The -vad suffix marks the plural present-tense or, in certain contexts, a participial function used to describe ongoing service activities by plural subjects. The word is neutral and descriptive, suitable for encyclopedic or formal writing about service work and the actors who perform it.