Küüntele

Kääntele is a Finnish verb that denotes turning or rotating something, typically with repeated or continual motion. The primary sense covers physical movement, such as turning a knob, flipping a piece of food in a pan, or rotating a part in machinery. Metaphorically, it can also mean considering something from different angles or turning an idea over in one’s mind.

The word is related to other forms built on the same root kääntä-, which appears in kääntää (to turn, or to translate), käännös (translation or conversion), and käänne (turn, shift). In everyday language, kääntele commonly appears in imperative form to give a command, for example when instructing someone to turn or flip something repeatedly. The infinitive form is käännellä, and related nouns include käännteleminen or kääntäminen, referring to the act of turning or turning back and forth.

Common contexts and examples include cooking, where you might tell someone to “kääntele fileet pannulla” to ensure even browning, or mechanical work, where a component must be “käännelty” to distribute wear. In figurative use, one can say to “kääntele asiaa mielessäsi” to mean turning the matter over in one’s mind before deciding. The term is widely understood in standard Finnish and remains a practical, everyday verb for both literal and metaphorical turning.