Vahetad

Vahetad is the second-person singular present tense form of the Estonian verb vahetama, which means to exchange, swap, or substitute. The infinitive vahetama denotes the general act of exchanging, while vahetad is used when addressing someone directly as “you exchange.” The word belongs to the common Estonian verb pattern formed from the root vahet- with the infinitive suffix -ama.

Etymology and form: Vahetama is a Finnic-language verb built from the stem vahet- and the infinitive suffix -ama. Vahetad is the present-tense form used with the second-person singular subject, as in “you exchange.” Other related forms include vahetan (I exchange) and vahetab (he/she exchanges).

Usage: Vahetama is transitive; it requires a direct object representing what is exchanged. The act can be literal (exchanging money or goods) or figurative (exchanging ideas, plans, or roles). In some contexts, the phrase vahetada vastu or vahetama … vastu is used to indicate what something is exchanged for.

Examples:

- Ma vahetan selle toote teise vastu. (I exchange this product for another.)

- Ma vahetan raha eurode vastu. (I exchange money for euros.)

- Ta vahetab oma plaani uue vastu. (They exchange their plan for a new one.)

See also: vahetama, vahetus. Vahetad remains mainly encountered as a grammatical form rather than a standalone lexical entry, serving as a key example of how Estonian marks subject agreement in the present tense.