Sünnitav

Sünnitav is an Estonian present active participle derived from the verb sünnitama, meaning “to give birth.” The word literally means “giving birth” and is used as an adjective or participle to describe something related to the act of giving birth or to a person performing it.

Grammatically, sünnitav is a present active participle. Like other participles in Estonian, it agrees with the noun it modifies in number and case, while gender is not marked. It is most commonly used attributively to describe a person or event connected with birth, and it can appear in predicative constructions in contexts that describe ongoing action, although in everyday use the finite verb or other periphrastic forms are often preferred.

Semantic notes: The sense is birth-related and emphasizes the ongoing act of giving birth or the relation to birth. It is not typically used for abstract or general statements about birth alone, but rather to characterize something as birth-giving or birth-related in a particular context.

Origin and related forms: The base verb is sünnitama; the present active participle suffix is -av, yielding sünnitav. Other verbal participles exist to express past or passive relations, but sünnitav specifically marks ongoing, active birth-related action.

See also: Estonian grammar; participles; sünnitama.