Supistuva

Supistuva is a Finnish adjective meaning contracting or constricting. It describes something that is becoming smaller, tighter, or more compact due to internal or external forces, or that tends to contract over time. The word is formed from the verb supistua, “to contract” or “to shrink,” with the present-participle suffix -va, yielding a modifier that can attach to nouns.

In practice, supistuva is used across several fields. In physiology and medicine it can describe a muscle or tissue that is actively contracting, for example supistuva lihas (contracting muscle) or supistuva verisuoni (constricting vessel). In economics or market analysis it may refer to trends of shrinking activity, such as supistuva markkina (contracting market) or supistuva kysyntä (decreasing demand). The word also appears in more general discussions of processes that reduce size or scope, for instance supistuva väestökehitys (shrinking population development).

Related forms include the verb supistua (to contract or shrink) and the noun supistus (a contraction or shrinkage). The noun form supistuminen refers to the process of contraction. As with many Finnish adjectives, supistuva agrees with the noun it modifies in number and case, yielding forms such as supistuvan lihaksen or supistuvat markkinat.

Overall, supistuva is a versatile term used to describe dynamical reduction, tightening, or narrowing in physical, biological, and economic contexts, and it remains common in technical and formal Finnish discourse.