Laskisivat

Laskisivat is the third-person plural conditional form of the Finnish verb laskea, meaning they would count or they would calculate. In Finnish, the conditional mood is used to express hypothetical situations, polite requests, or reported possibilities. Laskisivat appears in subordinate clauses, often following words like jos (if) or kuten (as).

Morphology and usage context

The form is built from the verb stem lask-, with the conditional suffix -isivat signaling third-person plural. It contrasts with laskivat, which is the past indicative “they counted,” and with laskisimme or laskisin, which would be first-person plural or singular conditional forms. Laskisivat is common in both written and spoken Finnish when describing what a group would do under certain conditions or when presenting a hypothetical scenario.

Typical contexts include:

- Hypothetical calculations or accounting: Jos he laskisivat kaikki kulut, saisi budjetti paremman kuvan.

- Hypothetical statements in reports or instructions: Mikäli he laskisivat luvut uudelleen, virheen todennäköisyys vähenisi.

- Polite or formal expressions describing what a group would do.

Examples

- Jos he laskisivat veronsa oikein, valtio keräisi oikean verran tuloja.

- He sanoivat, että he laskisivat luvut uudelleen löytääkseen virheen.

Related forms

Laskiaivastaista grammatistista näkökulmaa vasten laskisivat on osa konditionaalin taivutusmoodia. Perusmuoto on laskea, ja sen eri aikamuotoihin kuuluvat esimerkiksi laskevat (monentus), laskivat (menneisyys), sekä laskisivat (kolmas henkilön monikko konditionaali).