[pʎāwt]
CilmeFrom earlier *pjaut (for another example of *pj > pļ, see spļaut, from Proto-Baltic *pyau-, *pyū- (with the infinitive suffix -ti), from Proto-Indo-European *pēu-, *pyu-, *pū- (“to hit; to cut”). Cognates include Lithuanian pjauti (“to cut,” dialectally “to mow, to bite, to torment”), Old Prussian placename Gertepeawne [gertopiaun-], from gerto (“chicken”), i.e. “chicken meadow”, piuclan (“sickle”), Sudovian piaud (“to cut”), Ancient Greek παίω (paíō, “I hit, strike”), dialectal παυίω (pauíō), Latin paviō (“I hit, strike”).
- transitiveto mow, to reap (to cut, with a scythe or sickle, the parts above-ground part of grass, cereals, etc.)
“pļaut zāli, sienu, kviešus” — to mow grass, hay, wheat
“pļaut kartupeļu lakstus” — to mow potato tops
“rudzus sāka pļaut tuvākajā laukā” — they began reaping rye in the nearby field
- figuratively, transitiveto shoot intensively, repeatedly
“mūsu lielgabali atklāj pļaujošu uguni pa visu kolonnu” — our guns opened intensive (lit. mowing, reaping) fire on the entire (military) column
“ložmetējs pie mājas stūra atsācis šaut, tam pievienojās vēl otrs, vēl pāris rokas ložmetēju, un visi kopā tie pļāva tā, ka vācieši vairs neuzdrīkstējās ne galvu pacelt” — the machine gun at the corner of the building started shooting, a second one joined it, then a few more machine guns, all together they mowed, reaped in such a way that the Germans no longer even dare
Formasconjugation(first-person) · pļauju(present) · pļauj(present) · pļāvu(past) · es(first-person, indicative, singular) · pļauju(first-person, indicative, present, singular) · pļāvu(first-person, indicative, past, singular) · pļaušu(first-person, future, indicative, singular) · -(first-person, imperative, singular) · tu(indicative, second-person, singular) · pļauj(indicative, present, second-person, singular) · pļāvi(indicative, past, second-person, singular) · pļausi(future, indicative, second-person, singular) · pļauj(imperative, second-person, singular) · viņš(indicative, singular, third-person) · viņa(indicative, singular, third-person) · pļauj(indicative, present, singular, third-person) · pļāva(indicative, past, singular, third-person) · pļaus(future, indicative, singular, third-person) · lai pļauj(imperative, singular, third-person)