Latvian

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Etymology

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From Proto-Baltic *trūk-, from the same Proto-Indo-European stem *trewk-, *trūk- as Latvian traukt (to rush, to speed, to sweep) (q.v.). Cognates include Lithuanian trū́kti. Corresponding to the older meaning of traukt: “to jerk, to pull, to pluck,” the meaning of trūkt was at first “to be pulled, plucked,” and then “to break, to creak, to split (off)” — still an extant, albeit unfrequent, meaning, and also the basis of the meaning of many derived verbs: iztrūkt (to come off (knob, button)), notrūkt (to come, tear off), pārtrūkt (to break, to burst, to snap), satrūkties (to start, to jump), uztrūkties (to start) —, and finally “to not be there, to be less (than necessary), to lack,” which is the basis for pietrūkt (to be, run short of), iztrūkums (deficit, shortage).[1]

Pronunciation

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Verb

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trūkt (intransitive + dative, 1st conjugation, only 3rd person, present trūkst, past trūka)

  1. to lack, to be in short supply, to not be available
    trūkst laika, naudasthere is little or no time, money
    trūkst telputhere is little or no space
    darba netrūkstthere is no lack of work
    mums netrūkst nekāwe lack nothing
    telpā trūkst gaisain the room there is little or no air
    slimniekam trūkst elpasthe patient is short of breath
    uzturā trūkst vitamīnuin (this) diet vitamins are lacking
  2. (of body parts) to lack (to have lost, amputated)
    tēva labajai rokai trūka divu pirkstu(my) father's right hand lacked two fingers
    Kristam trūka rokas līdz elkonimKrists lacked an arm (up) to the elbow
  3. (of qualities, forces, knowledge) to lack, to not be enough
    par to mums trūkst ziņuwe lack, have no news about that
    meitenei trūkst izglītībasthe girl lacks education
    aktierim trūkst talantathe actor lacks talent
    viņam trūkst pašapziņas, izdomashe lacks self-confidence, ingenuity
    viņam trūkst drosmes atzītieshe lacks the courage to confess
    viņam trūkst pieredzes, zināšanu, meistarībashe lacks experience, knowledge, skill
    viņam trūkst vārdu, lai izteiktu savu sajūsmuhe lacks, has no words to express his delight
  4. to miss, to be absent, to not be there
    klasē trūkst divu skolēnuin class two students are missing
    plauktā trūkst dažu grāmatusome books are missing on the shelf
    pie viņas bija vecā krustmāte, bija Marta, bija Aina, Vilma; trūka vienīgi Artūrsat her (house) were (her) old godmother, Marta, Aina, Vilma; only Artūrs was missing
    ja manis kur trūkst un tas trūkums netiek nomanīts, tad tas man pašam vislabāk, ka manis tur trūkstif I am absent somewhere and this absence is not noticed, then it is better to me that I am absent there
    tos trūkstošos trīsdesmit vai četrdesmit miljonus viņi man labprāt piešķirsthe missing thirty or forty million they will give me willingly
  5. to miss, to suffer because of the absence (of someone, something)
    ziedu un rūpju vidū man tevis trūksamong the flowers and the concerns, I will miss you
    Augusts uzreiz sajuta, ka viņam trūkst sievasAugusts immediately felt that he was missing his wife
  6. (of ropes, threads, lines, etc., often together with the adverb in two, asunder, apart, torn) to snap, to split in two parts under tension
    virve trūkst pušuthe rope snaps
    pavediens mezglojas un trūkstthe wire gets entangled and snaps
    savītas stieples tik ātri netrūks(inter)twined, wound wires won't snap so fast
    dzimtas sakari trūkst ka pakulu pavedienifamily ties snap like tow fibers

Usage notes

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Normally used in the third person, this verb takes at most two complements: in the genitive, that which is lacking; and, in the dative, the entity that lacks it. Man trūkst laika — I(dat.) lack, have no time(gen.).

Conjugation

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Synonyms

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Derived terms

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prefixed verbs:
other derived terms:

References

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