Emotionaalinen

Emotionaalinen is a Finnish adjective meaning “emotional” in English. It describes processes, states, or expressions connected with feelings and affect. The term appears in everyday speech as well as in psychology, journalism, education, and literature to characterize mood, behavior, or reactions that involve emotions.

Etymology: The word is formed from the noun emootio (emotion) with the suffix -aalinen, a common pattern for adjectives describing properties. It functions as a direct loan-like equivalent of the English “emotional” and is used in similar semantic fields in Finnish.

Usage: It often precedes the noun, as in emotionaalinen reaktio (emotional reaction), emotionaalinen tuki (emotional support), and emotionaalinen hyvinvointi (emotional well-being). In contrast to tunteellinen, which can carry connotations of sentimentality or sensitivity, emotionaalinen emphasizes the presence or intensity of emotional states rather than sentimental value. In academic writing, it appears in discussions of emotional regulation, emotional intelligence, or emotional development.

Notes: Finnish adjectives like emotionaalinen inflect for case and number according to standard rules. Common collocations include emotionaalisen, emotionaalista, and emotionaaliset. Related terms include tunteellinen (sentimental or sensitive) and tunteet (emotions). The word is widely understood across Finnish-speaking contexts and is used across diverse registers from clinical to media discourse.