luudega

Luudega is an Estonian grammatical form meaning “with bones.” It functions as a comitative or instrumental expression, indicating accompaniment or involvement of bones in relation to another noun. The form is created from the noun luud (bones) in its genitive plural luude, to which the comitative suffix -ga is added, resulting in luudega. This construction is common in descriptive and label texts where the presence of bones is explicit.

Etymology and morphology: luud is the plural of luu (bone). The genitive plural luude marks possession or association, and adding -ga yields the comitative form luudega, which can be understood as “together with bones” or “bone-in” depending on context. The same comitative suffix appears with other nouns, producing forms such as koeraga (with a dog) or raamatuga (with a book).

Usage and context: luudega is typically employed in contexts where bones are present or involved, for example in culinary terms to describe bone-in meat (luudega liha, “bone-in meat”) or in product labeling. It can appear in descriptive passages, packaging, or menus. In everyday speech, speakers may opt for paraphrases such as koos luudega or simply refer to the bone content without using the formal luudega construction. The related opposite form luudeta means “boneless.”

See also: luu, luud, luudeta, comitative suffix -ga/-ga, Estonian grammar.