Search the Livonian dictionary
livonian_searchLook a word up in the real Livonian–Estonian–Latvian dictionary and return only attested content, so translations are grounded, not invented.
Search a meaning (in English/Latvian/Estonian) to find the Livonian headword, or a
Livonian word to confirm it exists and read its sense, part of speech and examples.
See the query and search_language parameter docs for how to phrase a query. By
default each match's full inflection table is returned inline, so one call usually
suffices; on a broad query only the first N tables expand (the rest are listed as
handles to fetch with livonian_get_inflections). Returns Markdown plus the same result as
structuredContent matching the declared outputSchema.
Results are cached server-side, so repeating a query is instant and free; a first-time query reaches the live dictionary and calls are rate limited — on a rate-limit error, wait a few seconds and retry instead of re-issuing immediately. Dictionary content is from livonian.tech (CC BY-SA 4.0 — attribute if republished).
Input Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| query | Yes | A SINGLE content word, not a phrase. Exactly one word per call — even with several candidates or synonyms in mind, search them one at a time ('see', then 'look'), never combined into one query like 'see look'. Drop function words and infinitive markers — search 'to water' as 'water', 'the sea' as 'sea'. The dictionary matches one attested headword, so a multi-word query often returns nothing even when the word exists; search the main word first, then refine. May be Livonian, Latvian, Estonian, or English (e.g. 'jarā', 'away', 'sea'). Matching is bidirectional. An inflected Livonian form (search_language='liv') is resolved to its dictionary lemma automatically when the form is known — the result says so when that happened. | |
| max_forms | No | Optional override for how many inflection tables to expand this call (0–12). Raise it to pull more tables in ONE call on a broad query, or set a small value to keep a broad query cheap. On an uncached query each table is fetched sequentially with polite pacing toward the upstream, so a high value on a cold broad query is slow — the bound limits upstream fan-out, not just response size. Omit to use the server's default cap. | |
| include_forms | No | When true (default), each match's full inflection table is returned INLINE — usable cases/tenses in ONE call, no follow-up livonian_get_inflections. Set false to get just the headword handles + glosses: a cheap way to SCREEN several candidate words or synonyms (which exist? which sense?) before spending forms on the one you pick. Bounded by a per-search cap — use max_forms to raise or lower it for this call. | |
| search_language | No | Language your query word is in — selects which language the search matches against: 'eng' (default), 'liv', 'lat', or 'est'. For English→Livonian translation, keep 'eng'. Glosses are in English. | eng |
Output Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| found | Yes | False when nothing matched. | |
| query | Yes | ||
| source | No | Ernštreits, Valts (ed. in chief), Viitso, Tiit-Rein, Vāvere, Signis, Damberg, Pētõr, Kurpniece, Milda, Balodis, Uldis, Tuisk, Tuuli, Kūla, Gita, Tomingas, Marili, Soosaar Sven-Erik, Sedláčková, Anna & Jurgenovskis, Toms. 2024. Livonian lexicographic database. Riga: University of Latvia Livonian Institute. https://livonian.tech/ (CC BY-SA 4.0) | |
| entries | No | Structured dictionary entries: headword, pronunciation, part of speech, paradigm anchors, and senses with example sentences. | |
| handles | No | ||
| language | Yes | ||
| resolved_from | No | The original inflected query when search_method='lemma_index'; empty on a direct match. | |
| search_method | No | How the match was found: 'direct' = the query itself matched; 'lemma_index' = the query was an inflected Livonian form, resolved to its dictionary lemma via the cached paradigm index and re-searched. | direct |
| resolved_lemma | No | The dictionary lemma actually searched when search_method='lemma_index'; empty on a direct match. | |
| forms_truncated | No | How many handles did NOT get an inline table because the per-search cap was reached. Refine the query or call livonian_get_inflections. |