Etsimään

Etsimään is the infinitive form of the Finnish verb etsiä, meaning "to search." It is created by adding the suffix -mään to the verb stem etsi-, resulting in a non-finite form that is commonly described as an infinitive of purpose. This form is used to indicate that the action of searching is connected to another verb, often expressing intention or the purpose of an action.

Usage and examples

Etsimään is typically found in constructions with another verb, especially when expressing what someone is going to do or what their goal is. For example, Menen etsimään vastauksia (I am going to search for answers). Hän lähti etsimään kadonnutta avainta (She/He left to search for the missing key). Olinkin menossa etsimään tietoa (I was on my way to search for information). The form can also appear in phrases that describe ongoing or future plans to search, such as Olen menossa etsimään apua.

Grammatical notes

Etsimään functions as a non-finite verb form and does not by itself convey tense. It is used in combination with other verbs to express purpose, intention, or planned action. It is related to the base verb etsiä (to search) and its noun form etsintä (searching) and etsiminen (the act of searching).

See also

etsiä, etsintä, etsiminen.