Vaatama

Vaatama is an Estonian verb meaning to look at or to watch. It is a common, transitive verb used to express directing one’s gaze toward something or observing an activity such as a film, a show, or an event. The infinitive ends with -ama, placing vaatama in the typical class of Estonian -ama verbs.

In the present tense, vaatama follows a regular pattern. The standard forms are: ma vaatan, sa vaatad, ta vaatab, me vaatame, te vaatate, nad vaatavad. The verb can combine with objects in everyday phrases, for example ma vaatan filmi (I watch a film) or ta vaatab telekat/televiisorit (he watches TV). The simple past tense is formed with standard past endings: ma vaatasin, sa vaatasid, ta vaatas, me vaatasime, te vaatasite, nad vaatasid. The perfect aspect is created with olema plus the past participle, as in olen vaadanud (I have watched).

A related noun is vaatamine, which means the act of watching or looking, and vaatav is a present participle used in certain adjectival constructions. The verb is also used in combinations that express intention or ongoing action, such as ta hakkab vaatama (he is going to watch) or ta on vaadanud kolm korda (he has watched three times).

Vaatama is widely used in everyday Estonian, including media contexts and descriptions of viewing activities. It is a basic verb for describing perception, attention, and consumption of visual media.