sõida

Sõida is the imperative form of the Estonian verb sõita, meaning to go by vehicle, to drive, or to ride. It is used to give a direct command or instruction to one person, such as telling someone to move or travel in a particular way or direction. The corresponding infinitive is sõita, and the verb belongs to the common class of Estonian motion verbs.

In general Estonian verbs are conjugated for person and tense, so sõita has forms for different subjects and times, for example sõidan (I drive), sõidad (you drive), and sõitis (he/she drove). TheImperative mood, used for direct commands, has the singular form sõida. Context and punctuation usually indicate the intended force of the directive, with sõida often appearing in traffic directions, greetings, or instructions like Sõida ettevaatlikult (Drive carefully) or Sõida linnast välja (Drive out of the city).

Usage considerations include that sõita covers movement by various conveyances, such as cars, buses, bicycles, or other vehicles, as well as more general travel by means of transport. For horse riding or other forms of locomotion, Estonian uses different verbs (e.g., ratsutama for riding a horse), while sõita focuses on vehicles or motorized travel.

Related forms and derivatives include the infinitive sõita, the noun sõit (a ride or a trip), and the gerundial form sõites (while riding/driving). The word is native to Estonian and widely used in everyday language, road signs, and travel instructions, reflecting its central role in describing movement by conveyance.