Juostessa

Juostessa is a Finnish adverbial participle form derived from the verb juosta (to run). It expresses that the action of running is taking place at the same time as another action, and it is commonly translated into English as “while running” or “in the act of running.” The form is used to provide temporal or situational context in a sentence.

Formation and morphology: juostessa is created by attaching the suffix -essa to the stem of the verb juosta, yielding juostessa. This makes it a non-finite clause that can function as an adverbial modifier of time or circumstance within a larger sentence.

Usage and function: The juostessa form describes concurrent actions, setting a scene or explaining what was happening when something else occurred. It is typical in written Finnish, including descriptive prose and narration, and can appear at the beginning or middle of a sentence. Because it is a non-finite clause, the main verb remains finite in the main clause.

Examples:

- Juostessa hän kuuli askeleita. (While running, he heard footsteps.)

- Juostessaan hän sai kuulla, mitä kaupungissa tapahtui. (As he was running, he got to hear what was happening in the city.)

Relation to other forms: Finnish also has other participial constructions that convey timing or manner, and speakers may choose different forms depending on nuance or style. In everyday spoken Finnish, people sometimes prefer explicit subordinate clauses (for example, using kun or sillä aikaa kuin) to express similar ideas, but juostessa remains a standard, concise option in formal or literary contexts.