Latvian edit

Etymology edit

From the same stem as tīrs (clean) (q.v.), of which it was originally the causative form (cf. its Lithuanian cognate týrinti (to make clear, clean)).[1]

Pronunciation edit

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Verb edit

tīrīt (transitive, 3rd conjugation, present tīru, tīri, tīra, past tīrīju)

  1. to clean (to make something clean, cleaner, e.g.,by scrubbing or washing it)
    tīrīt apģērbus, zābakusto clean one's clothes, boots
    ķīmiski tīrīt mētelito dry-clean the coat (lit. to clean it chemically)
    tīrīt dzīvoklito clean the apartment
    tīrīt zobusto clean (one's) teeth
    tīrīt ielu no sniegato clean the street from snow
    ūdens strūkla tīra ietvesthe water spray cleans the sidewalks
    man gan vienmēr paticis tīrīt, kārtot, mazgāt... ja man būtu bijis laiks!I always liked to clean, to tidy up, to wash... if only I had had time!
  2. to clean (to remove something undesirable, e.g. dirt, stains, etc., from something else)
    tīrīt putekļusto clean the dust
    tīrīt gružus no celiņato clean the debris from the roadway
    sieviete apstājās netālu no durvīm un sāka tīrīt no drēbēm snieguthe woman stood near the door and began to clean the snow from her clothes
  3. to clean (to separate unnecessary parts, elements from something, in order to prepare it for use, or for further processing)
    tīrīt zivis, saknesto clean fish, roots
    tīrīt zvīņas (no zivju)to clean the scales (from fish)
    tīrīt sēnesto clean the mushrooms
    tīrīt graudu sēklasto clean the grain seeds
  4. to clean (to free a territory, an organization, etc. from undesirable people)
    bet tur mežā nebūt nav mazāk bīstami: vācieši kopā ar šucmaņiem laiku pa laikam tīra mežusbut there in the forest it would not be less dangerous: the Germans and their policemen occasionally cleaned the forests
  5. (colloquial) to clean, to steal

Conjugation edit

Derived terms edit

prefixed verbs:
other derived terms:

Related terms edit

References edit

  1. ^ Karulis, Konstantīns (1992) “tīrs”, in Latviešu Etimoloģijas Vārdnīca (in Latvian), Rīga: AVOTS, →ISBN