kestust

Kestust is the partitive singular form of the Estonian noun kestus, which denotes duration—the length of time something lasts. The core idea is the span from the start to the end of a period, event, or process. In Estonian, kestus is used in many contexts to express how long something takes or endures.

Common contexts include media, events, work, travel, and data reporting. Examples: “filmi kestus on kaks tundi” (the film’s duration is two hours); “koosoleku kestus on kolmveerand tundi” (the meeting lasts 45 minutes); “seansi kestus on kolmkümmend minutit” (the session lasts thirty minutes). In computing and analytics, kestust may describe session length or user engagement time.

Durations are typically expressed in units such as sekundid, minutid, tunnid, and päevad, and measured with clocks, timers, or logs. Kestust is a standard descriptor in contracts and schedules to specify how long a project, rental, or service lasts.

Etymology and related terms: kestust derives from kestama “to last.” A related noun kestvus denotes endurance or staying power, a related but distinct sense.