Virtaavien

Virtaavien is the genitive plural form of the Finnish present active participle virtaava, meaning flowing or streaming. The participle virtaava is derived from the verb virrata, “to flow,” with the suffix -va that marks a present active participle. As an adjective, virtaava inflects like other Finnish adjectives and can modify nouns across cases and numbers; virtaavien is specifically used to express the genitive plural, for example in phrases describing more than one flowing thing.

Use and meaning

Virtaavien is typically found in noun phrases where the noun is in the genitive plural. For example: virtaavien vesien (the flowing waters) and virtaavien jokien (the flowing rivers). These forms allow the participle to describe the noun while the noun itself is in a different case, often in genitive, partitive, or other grammatical constructions within a larger sentence.

Function in sentences

In attributive position, virtaava forms like virtaavien can precede a noun to describe its quality, such as a flowing characteristic of bodies of water or rivers. The same participle can also appear in phrases where the entire noun phrase is part of a larger clause, preserving the genitive plural ending on the participle while the noun bears its own case ending.

Related

Virtaavien is part of Finnish grammar’s system of participles that function as adjectives. It illustrates how adjectives inflect to agree with the noun they modify in number and case. See also Finnish grammar, present active participles, and genitive plural endings.