Osoittavaa

Osoittavaa is a Finnish grammatical form derived from the verb osoittaa, meaning to indicate or to point. It is the present active participle in the partitive singular, and it functions primarily as an attributive participle that describes a noun. The base nominative form of the participle is osoittava, meaning “the indicating one,” while the partitive form osoittavaa is used when the modified noun is in the partitive case or when the action is viewed as indefinite or general.

Grammatical role and usage

As a participle, osoittavaa behaves like an adjective and agrees with the noun it modifies in number and case. The partitive form is common when the surrounding context calls for indefiniteness or partial emphasis, such as when referring to something that indicates or points in a non-specific way. It can also appear in noun phrases where the act or quality of indicating is highlighted.

Typical contexts

- Describing gestures or signs: osoittavaa elettä (a pointing gesture)

- Describing objects that indicate something: osoittavaa sormea (the pointing finger)

- Used in clauses that emphasize the indicating action in a general sense

Notes

Osoittavaa is one of several present active participle forms in Finnish, formed with the suffix -va/-vä and inflected like an adjective. In many contexts, Finnish speakers also use the base form osoittava to describe a person or thing that indicates, with the form chosen depending on grammatical case and definiteness.

See also

Finnish grammar, present active participles, osoittaa.