kuulan

Kuulan is the first-person singular present tense form of the Estonian verb kuulama, meaning to listen or to pay attention. It indicates that the speaker is actively listening or tends to listen in a given situation. Kuulam is transitive, typically taking a direct object in the accusative or partitive case to specify what is being listened to, such as music, a person, or a story. For example, Ma kuulan muusikat means “I am listening to music,” and Ma kuulan sind can be used to express “I am listening to you” when someone is speaking.

Form and usage. The present tense is formed by attaching the present-tense ending to the stem: ma kuulan, sa kuulad, ta kuulab, me kuulame, te kuulate, nad kuulavad. The verb is commonly combined with nouns in the partitive or accusative to specify the content of the listening, such as muusika, juttu, or loeng. Kuulan can also convey a general habit or preference, as in Ma kuulan alati helisid, “I always listen for sounds.”

Distinction from kuulen. Kuulan is often contrasted with kuulen, the first-person present form of the related verb kuuldama/kuuldda meaning “to hear.” Kuulan expresses active listening or focusing on what is being said or played, whereas kuulen denotes perceiving sounds without necessarily paying deliberate attention. For example, Ma kuulan õpetajat (I am listening to the teacher) versus Ma kuulen õpetajat (I hear the teacher).

See also. kuulama, kuuldav, Estonian verb conjugation.