Väistyi

Väistyi is a Finnish verb form derived from väistyä, meaning to move aside, yield, or withdraw. In its imperfect tense, väistyi indicates that the subject moved aside in the past to let others pass or to give way. The action is typically intransitive: the subject performs the movement away from the path or position of another agent. Väistyi is used in both literal descriptions—such as traffic, crowds, or people stepping aside—and in figurative language to describe yielding a stance, retreat from a plan, or stepping back from a controversial position under pressure.

The root and related forms are connected to the noun väistö, which denotes the act of moving aside. The present tense form used with a subject is väistyy, as in situations where something or someone yields or moves aside in the present. The phrase väistyi tieltä (to move from someone’s path) is a common construction, for example: Auto väistyi jalankulkijan tieltä.

Usage notes: Väistyi is most naturally found in narrative or descriptive prose, including news reporting about traffic or crowd dynamics, as well as in literary language when depicting retreat or concession. It often appears with adverbial phrases indicating direction or passage, such as tieltä or ohitse, to specify what was avoided or yielded.

See also: väistö, väistää, väistämisprosessi.