Viivähtää

Viivähtää is a Finnish verb meaning to linger, to take longer than planned, or to be delayed. It describes situations where time passes with a sense of pause or hesitation, as well as events that unfold more slowly than expected. The nuance can be formal or literary, but it is also used in everyday speech to convey that something is taking longer than anticipated.

In use, viivähtää often refers to the postponement of actions or the delay of events, rather than a concrete action by someone. It can describe waiting or hesitation as well as slow progression of a process. The sense can carry a neutral, descriptive tone or a slightly literary nuance depending on context. The related verb family includes viivästyä (to be delayed) and viivästää (to delay someone or something), which share the same semantic field of delay and postponement.

Grammatical notes: viivähtää is an intransitive verb that typically appears with time and place adverbials, such as viiveellä considering duration or paikassa to indicate lingering. Its conjugation follows regular Finnish -HTÄÄ verbs: present viivähtää, imperfect viivähti, perfect viivähtänyt, and forms like viivähtäessä (during lingering).

See also: viivästyä, viivästää, viivästys, viipyä.

Examples:

- Kokouksen alkaminen viivästyi teknisen vian vuoksi. (The start of the meeting was delayed due to a technical fault.)

- Hän viivähti kaupungissa pitkään. (He lingered in the city for a long time.)

- Projekti eteni hitaasti, ja koko aikataulu viivästyi. (The project progressed slowly, and the entire schedule was delayed.)