Koristeltiin

Koristeltiin is the passive past tense form of the Finnish verb koristella, which means to decorate or adorn. In use it expresses that a person or group decorated something, but the agent is often left unspecified. The form is common in descriptive and news-like writing, where the focus is on the result of decoration rather than who did the decorating.

Morphology and usage: Koristeltiin is formed from the verb koristella with the passive past tense ending, typically -tiin. In Finnish, the passive voice does not always indicate the agent; the subject of the sentence is the thing that was decorated, while the doer can be omitted or introduced with a separate phrase such as “yhteisön toimesta” or “jokin tekijä.” The construction is versatile and can refer to events, premises, or objects being decorated for occasions, festivals, or displays.

Examples:

- Juhlaa koristeltiin teemaan sopivilla väreillä.

- Tilat koristeltiin kukkakoristein ja valaisimin.

Etymology and related forms: Koristeltiin derives from the verb koristella, itself related to the noun koriste (decoration). The passive past form is part of standard Finnish verb conjugation and parallels other verbs that describe arrangements or alterations made to an object or space.

See also: koristella, passiivi (Finnish grammar), imperfekti (Finnish past).