valge

Estonian

Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *valkëda, from Proto-Finno-Ugric *wëlketa, from *walke or *wïlki (“light”). Cognate with Finnish valkea, Livonian vālda, Votic valkõa, Ingrian valkia, Karelian valgie, Livvi valgei, Ludian valged, Veps vauged, Northern Sami vielgat (from Proto-Samic *vielkëtē) and Eastern Mari волгыдо (volgydo, “light, brightness”); possibly also Erzya валдо (valdo, “light”), Moksha валда (valda, “light”) and Hungarian villám (“lightning”), világ (“light”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈvɑlɡ̊e/,

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑlɡe
• Hyphenation: val‧ge

Adjective

valge (genitive valge, partitive valget, comparative valgem, superlative kõige valgem or valgeim)

1. white (color)

   Jõuluvanal on pikk valge habe.

   Santa Claus has a long white beard.

   Antonym: must

   1. Covered in snow.

      Hommikuks oli maa valge.

      By the morning, the ground was covered in snow.

      Synonym: lumine

2. light, bright, illuminated

   valge suveöö ― a white summer night

   Väljas on veel valge.

   It's still bright outside.

   Synonym: hele

   Antonym: pime

3. Having light skin, belonging to the Caucasian race.

   valged lõuna-aafriklased ― white South Africans

   Synonym: valgenahaline

4. Related to the counterrevolutionary White movement during the Russian Civil War.

   Synonym: valgekaartlik

Declension

Synonyms

• (light, bright, illuminated): hele
• (covered in snow): lumine
• (having light skin): valgenahaline
• (related to the White movement): valgekaartlik

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of "white (color)"): must
• (antonym(s) of "light, bright, illuminated"): pime

Derived terms

Compounds

Noun

valge (genitive valge, partitive valget)

1. The color white, something colored in white.

   Pruut oli üleni valges.

   The bride was dressed in all-white.

2. sunlight, illumination

   Synonym: päevavalgus

   Perenaine tõusis enne valget ja tegi hommikusöögi valmis.

   The housewife got up at the break of dawn and prepared breakfast.

3. A person having light skin, belonging to the Caucasian race.

   Synonym: valgenahaline

   Lõuna-Aafrika valged ― the white people of South Africa

4. A person belonging to the counterrevolutionary White movement during the Russian Civil War.

   Synonym: valgekaartlane

Declension

Synonyms

• (sunlight): päevavalgus
• (a person having light skin): valgenahaline
• (a person belonging to the White movement): valgekaartlane

Compounds

See also

References

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

Latin

Adjective

valge

1. vocative masculine singular of valgus