Heikkenevät

Heikkenevät is a Finnish verb form that means “they weaken” or “they are weakening.” It describes a process of decline or deterioration affecting multiple subjects, such as conditions, situations, or conditions of objects over time.

Grammatically, heikkenevät is the present tense, third-person plural form of the verb heikentyä (to become weaker). The infinitive is heikentyä, and the corresponding forms align with a plural subject in the present tense. The word can appear in statements about ongoing decline, for example with nouns such as tilanteet (situations), sääolosuhteet (weather conditions), or talous (economy) when describing deteriorating states.

Usage and nuance, in Finnish, center on gradual change rather than sudden flips. Heikkenevät often implies a trend or progression toward weaker condition, rather than a one-off event. It can be used in both literal contexts (physical strength or health) and figurative ones (economic strength, quality of life, or reliability).

Related terms include heikentää (to weaken something, a transitive verb), heikentyminen (the process of weakening), and heikkous (weakness). The adjective form describing something that is becoming weaker is heikkenevä.

Examples:

- Tilanteet heikkenevät nopeasti hallituksen toimenpiteistä huolimatta.

- Sääolosuhteet heikkenevät tulevina päivinä odotettua enemmän.

See also: heikentää, heikentyminen, heikkous, heikkenevä.