Hävinnyt

Hävinnyt is a Finnish past participle and adjective derived from the verb hävitä, meaning to disappear or to be lost. It is used to indicate that something that was previously present has disappeared or is no longer present, or that someone has vanished. The form can function predicatively (as a predicate) or attributively (modifying a noun).

As a predicate, hävinnyt is used with the auxiliary verb olla (to be) to state a status, often in the sense of “has disappeared” or “is lost.” Examples include Lompakko on hävinnyt (The wallet has disappeared / is lost) and Hän on hävinnyt (He has vanished). As an attributive adjective, it agrees with the noun in number and case, for example hävinnyt esine (a lost item) and hävinneet esineet or hävinneet tavarat (lost items) in plural. In Finnish, the past participle used as an adjective commonly inflects for number and case, while the participle form changes to suit the noun it describes.

Etymology traces hävinnyt to the verb hävitä, “to disappear” or “to be lost,” which is native to Finnish and related to concepts of loss, as reflected in the related noun häviö (loss). The word is more common in written or formal language; in everyday speech kadonnut (gone, disappeared) is often preferred for everyday reference to missing objects, while hävinnyt can convey a sense of lasting absence or formal reporting of loss.

See also: kadonnut, kadonneet, hävitä.