Kohdennettusana

Kohdennettusana is a term used in linguistic analysis to describe a word that marks the target or focal referent within a clause or discourse. The concept centers on how speakers direct attention to a specific entity as the goal of an action or as the object of reference, helping listeners identify the intended target efficiently. It is related to information structure, deixis, and the use of demonstratives or focus markers in many languages.

Etymology and relation to other notions: The word combines Finnish kohdennettu (targeted) and sana (word). In practice, kohdennettusana overlaps with elements that signal focus or referential target, such as demonstratives, pronouns, or special focus particles. While some grammars treat it as a distinct label, others describe the same phenomena under broader categories like focus markers or deictic determiners.

Function and use: In descriptive grammar, kohdennettusana helps pinpoint which entity a sentence is directing attention toward or aiming at as a goal. It can be realized through various morphological or syntactic devices depending on the language, and it has practical relevance for language teaching and analysis of discourse coherence. In computational linguistics, the concept informs focus-aware natural language generation and target resolution in dialogue systems, contributing to more natural-sounding references.

Example: In Finnish, a phrase such as "Tämän talon haluan" (I want this house) uses "tämän" to mark the target referent—“this house”—as the focus of the statement. Similar mechanisms occur in other languages with demonstratives or focus particles that identify target entities.

See also: focus, information structure, deixis, demonstratives, reference resolution.