Epätoimivan

Epätoimivan is the genitive singular form of the Finnish adjective epätoimiva, meaning nonfunctional or not operating. The word is used in technical or descriptive texts to refer to the nonfunctionality of a thing, especially devices, systems, or processes. The prefix epä- signals negation, and toimiva means functional or operative; combined, epätoimiva describes something that does not operate as intended.

In Finnish, adjectives agree with the noun they modify in case and number. When the noun is in the genitive singular, the attributive adjective takes the corresponding form, resulting in epätoimivan before the noun, as in epätoimivan laitteen korjaus (the repair of a nonfunctional device) or epätoimivan järjestelmän vika (the fault of a nonfunctional system).

The predicative form is epätoimiva, used in clauses like Laitteet ovat epätoimivia. Other cases follow standard Finnish adjective declension, with partitive epätoimivaa, essive epätoimivana, etc.

Etymology: formed from the negative prefix epä- and the root toimiva (to act, function). Related terms include epätoiminto (nonfunctioning) and toimintahäiriö (operational fault).

See also: Finnish adjectives; epätoimiva, toimia, tekninen vika.

Note: The word is primarily used in technical, engineering, or maintenance contexts. It may appear in manuals, reports, or logs describing malfunctioning components.