tõsi

From Proto-Finnic *toci, compare dialectal tosi (Northeastern Coastal dialect).

Further etymology is unclear. Possibly from Proto-Uralic *čoďe (compare Northern Mansi со̄ль (sōlʹ)). Other hypotheses include both a Baltic borrowing, compare Lithuanian stačias (“straight; erect, upright”), status (“steep”), and a Germanic loan, possibly from Proto-Germanic *stōdija- (“firm, steadfast, steady, serious, honest, fair”). Both can be traced back to the same Proto-Indo-European root: *steh₂- (“to stand”).

Cognates include Finnish tosi, Votic tõsi, Livonian tuož, Ingrian and Karelian tosi, Livvi, Livonian, Ludian, and Veps tozi and Northern Sami duohta (from Proto-Samic *tuotë, probably borrowed from Proto-Finnic).

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɤsi/, [ˈtɤsʲi]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɤsi
• Hyphenation: tõ‧si

tõsi (genitive tõe, partitive tõtt)

1. truth (a statement, story, etc. that reflects a real situation, which actually exists)

   Synonym: tõde

   Antonym: vale

   Tahan teada tõtt. ― I want to know the truth.

   Uskumatu, kuid tõsi. ― Unbelievable, but true.

   Vannun, et rääkisin tõtt. ― I swear I was telling the truth.

   Kas ta räägib tõtt või valetab? ― Is (s)he telling the truth or lying?

   Pole kerge tõtt valest eraldada. ― It is not easy to separate truth from falsehood.

   Pole tõsi, selle oled sa ise välja mõelnud! ― That's not true, you made it up!

   Selles jutus pole raasugi tõtt. ― There's not a shred of truth in that story.

   Tuleb endale tõtt tunnistada. ― We have to admit the truth to ourselves.

   Kuulujutt ei vasta tõele. ― The rumour is not true.

   Tema võtab kõike tõe pähe. ― (S)he takes everything at face value. (literally, “ […] to the head of truth.”)

   On see tõsi või ainult sinu ettekujutus? ― Is this true or just your imagination?

   Ärevad aimdused osutusid tõeks. ― The fearful suspicions turned out to be true.

   Ennustus sai tõeks. ― The prediction came true.

   Tõtt öelda, see ei puutu minusse. ― To tell the truth, that's not my business.

   Söö, mis küps, räägi, mis tõsi. (proverb) ― Eat what's ripe, tell what's true.

2. Confirming or admitting the validity of what has been said.

   Tõsi, ta abiellub. ― Yeah, (s)he is getting married.

   Uhke ta oli, see on tõsi. ― (S)he was proud indeed.

   Ilus ümbrus siin, see on sula tõsi. ― Beautiful surroundings here, that's for sure.

   Tõsi küll, ega temalgi kõik libedalt lähe. ― Admittedly, not everything goes smoothly for him/her either.

This term is considered a noun in Estonian dictionaries, but it often behaves as a predicative adjective, a particle or an interjection.

tõsi and its synonym tõde differ only in the nominative and partitive singular. Other than that, they are fully synonymous both grammatically and semantically.

• tõsi in Sõnaveeb (Eesti Keele Instituut)
• “tõsi”, in [EKSS] Eesti keele seletav sõnaraamat [Descriptive Dictionary of the Estonian Language] (in Estonian) (online version), Tallinn: Eesti Keele Sihtasutus (Estonian Language Foundation), 2009

From Proto-Finnic *toci.

• (Luutsa, Liivtšülä) IPA^(key): /ˈtɤsi/, [ˈtɤsʲi]
• Rhymes: -ɤsi
• Hyphenation: tõ‧si

tõsi

1. true

When this adjective is used attributively, the nominative singular form is (chiefly) used. When it is used predicatively, the partitive singular form is used.

All other forms except the nominative and partitive singular forms are rare and are only practically used as adverbs; see the usage notes.

• Hallap, V., Adler, E., Grünberg, S., Leppik, M. (2012) “tõsi”, in Vadja keele sõnaraamat [A dictionary of the Votic language], 2nd edition, Tallinn