tunnistab

Tunnistab is an Estonian verb that means to recognize, identify, or acknowledge. It is used when someone identifies a person or thing, when a fact is admitted, or when a person confesses guilt. The sense can range from identifying someone in a crowd to acknowledging a truth in a statement or testimony.

The verb is the third-person singular present tense form of tunnistama. The infinitive is tunnistama, and its basic conjugation yields forms such as tunnistas (past tense) and tunnistanud (past participle). It is a transitive verb and typically takes a direct object or a clause introduced by the conjunction et to express admission or acknowledgment. In legal or formal contexts, tunnistab is commonly used to denote confession of guilt or admission of a fact.

Etymologically, tunnistama derives from a Finnic root related to recognition and acknowledgment. Related nouns include tunnistus (identification, certificate) and tunnustus (acknowledgment, confession), and the noun tunnustus or tunnistus can be examined in related contexts of official identification or formal acknowledgment.

Usage notes include that tunnistab can function across senses of recognizing someone or something and of admitting a verifiable fact. In everyday Estonian, it frequently appears in statements of confession or admission: for example, ta tunnistab oma süüd (he confesses his guilt) or ta tunnistab, et ta oli eksinud (he admits that he was mistaken). Distinct but related forms and nouns help distinguish whether the focus is on recognition, identification, or acknowledgment.