A Latvian verb for sleeping, lying down, resting or being situated somewhere, with figurative uses for still coverings and a slang sense of sleeping with someone.
To lie, settle, or spread over a place, said of fog, darkness, silence, snow, or a similar still covering.
Examples
Pār laukiem guļ bieza migla.
Thick fog lies over the fields.
Ielejā gulēja vakara ēnas.
Evening shadows lay in the valley.
Pēc sniega ciemā gulēja dziļš klusums.
After the snow, deep silence lay over the village.
Virs upes guļ pelēki mākoņi.
Gray clouds hang over the river.
Tumsa gulēja pār ceļu līdz rītam.
Darkness lay over the road until morning.
Similar words
klāties
izplatīties
dusēt
snaust
Have sex with someone
verb
relationships
slang
To sleep with someone, meaning to have sex with that person.
Examples
Viņa negribēja gulēt ar cilvēku, ko tikko satikusi.
She did not want to sleep with someone she had just met.
Baumas apgalvoja, ka viņš guļ ar kolēģi.
Rumors claimed that he was sleeping with a colleague.
Viņi sāka gulēt kopā tikai pēc ilgām attiecībām.
They started sleeping together only after a long relationship.
Šajā nozīmē gulēt ir sarunvalodas vārds.
In this sense, sleep is a colloquial word.
Viņa jautāja, vai viņi vēl guļ kopā.
She asked whether they were still sleeping together.
Similar words
mīlēties
pārgulēt
čupoties
Etymology
Related to Latvian gult, to lie down, and cognate with Lithuanian gulėti. The older history is connected with a Baltic verb family for lying or resting.
FAQ
What does gulēt mean?
It most often means to sleep or be asleep, but it can also mean to lie, rest, or be situated somewhere.
How do you say I sleep in Latvian?
Say es guļu, not es gulēt.
What is the past tense of gulēt?
The common past forms include es gulēju, tu gulēji, and viņš gulēja.
Is guļāja correct?
No. The correct past form is gulēja, as in viņi gulēja līdz rītam.
What is the difference between gulēt and gulties?
Gulēt names the state of sleeping or lying, while gulties means to lie down or get into that position.
Can gulēt mean that an object lies somewhere?
Yes. Uz galda guļ vēstule means a letter is lying on the table.
Can gulēt describe fog or darkness?
Yes. In figurative or literary Latvian, fog, darkness, silence, or shadows can gulēt over a place.
Does gulēt mean sleep with someone?
Yes, in slang gulēt ar kādu means to sleep with someone or have sex with that person.
What is the debitive form of gulēt?
The debitive form is jāguļ, meaning must sleep or has to lie down.
Comments & contributions
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Hidden Lynx
Jul 11
guļu still looks impossible to spell tbh
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Hardy Trout
Jul 10
Čučēt sounds soft, mostly kids / pets language. Fine for a toddler, a cat, maybe joking with your partner, but dont use it like a plain neutral verb for adults.
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Solid Snail
Jul 7
man jāguļ, not es jāguļu. That jā form takes the person in dative, same pattern as man jāiet or man jāstrādā
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Rustic Beagle
Jul 4
I used to translate went to sleep as aizmigu every time and got corrected. Latvian keeps those apart. Aizgāju gulēt is more like I went to bed, maybe you lay there scrolling for another hour. Aizmigu is when you actually fell asleep.