Määratlevas

Määratlevas is a Finnish grammatical term. It translates to "defining" or "restrictive" in English. In grammar, it refers to a clause or phrase that restricts or specifies the meaning of another part of the sentence. A määratlevas clause is essential to the meaning of the sentence, and if removed, the sentence's meaning would change or become unclear. For example, in the sentence "The book that I am reading is interesting," the clause "that I am reading" is a määratlevas clause. It specifies which book is being discussed. Without it, the sentence "The book is interesting" could refer to any book. In Finnish grammar, these clauses often employ relative pronouns. The concept is similar to restrictive relative clauses in English. They are contrasted with "mittamääräinen" or "kuvaileva" (non-defining or descriptive) clauses, which add extra information but are not essential to the core meaning. Understanding the distinction between määratlevas and non-defining clauses is important for accurate sentence construction and comprehension in Finnish.