läinud

Läinud is an Estonian word that functions as the past participle of the verb minema, meaning to go or to leave. It denotes a completed action of going away and is used to express tense in combination with the auxiliary verb olema (to be). In sentences, läinud appears in perfect tenses such as olen läinud (I have gone) or olin läinud (I had gone). The participle itself does not carry person or number; these distinctions are supplied by the auxiliary.

In addition to its verbal use, läinud can be employed as an adjective in noun phrases to convey the sense of “past” or “former.” A common example is läinud aasta, meaning last year. Other phrases such as läinud aeg or läinud olukord may appear in discourse to refer to previously elapsed times or conditions.

Morphology and usage notes: läinud is the standard, uninflected form of the participle when used predicatively or attributively in simple phrases. In compound tenses, Estonian relies on the auxiliary olema to mark person and number, while läinud provides the meaning of completed departure or movement. The spelling includes the diacritic ä, reflecting Estonian phonology.

Etymology and related forms: läinud derives from the verb minema (to go) and is part of the broader Estonian participle system that forms non-finite verb forms used across tenses and moods. Related concepts include other Estonian participles and the broader area of Estonian grammar, in which participles can function as adjectives or as components of compound tenses.

See also: Estonian grammar, participles, minema (to go).