This is the 188th most frequent Estonian word.
polnud
"Polnud" means "was not" or "were not" in English.
Here, "polnud" is employed to describe the absence of someone in a location in the past.
Seal polnud kedagi.
There was no one there.
This instance of "polnud" conveys the absence of interesting items in a container when referring to the past.
Kastis polnud midagi huvitavat.
There was nothing interesting in the box.
In this sentence, "polnud" is used to negate the state of being ready in the past tense.