Tuhoittaa

Tuhoittaa is a Finnish verb meaning to destroy, ruin, or annihilate. It is a transitive verb used for both physical destruction (for example a building, a forest, or equipment) and the destruction of non-physical things such as plans, reputations, or hopes. The word is common in everyday language as well as in journalism, literature, and technical contexts dealing with damage, safety, or warfare. A related noun is tuho, meaning destruction or ruin, and the adjective tuhoisa, meaning destructive.

Etymology and related forms: tuhoittaa derives from the noun tuho with the suffix -ittaa, a productive pattern in Finnish for verbs that express causing an action. The root tuho- also appears in other forms, such as tuhoutua (to be destroyed) and tuho, the noun. The term tuhoisa (destructive) and the process noun tuhoaminen (destruction) are closely related derivatives.

Conjugation and usage: tuhoittaa belongs to the Finnish verb system and forms its present tense as hän tuhoittaa (he/she destroys) and minä tuhoitan (I destroy). The past tense is tuhoitin (I destroyed) or tuhoitti (he destroyed). Finnish does not have a dedicated future tense; future meaning is typically conveyed by the present tense or with auxiliary constructions. The verb is commonly used with direct objects referring to concrete items or abstract concepts.

Example sentences: Sota voi tuhoittaa kaupunkeja. (War can destroy cities.) Tulivuoren purkaus tuhosi kylän. (The eruption destroyed the village.) Tuhon tarkoituksena on pysäyttää lisävauriot? (The purpose of destruction is to stop further damage.)

See also: tuho, tuhoisa, tuhoutua, hävittää.