allattava

Allattava is a Finnish word that can function as an adjective formed with the present participle suffix -va/-vä. It is generally derived from a verb meaning to provide nourishment, especially to a dependent such as an infant. In Finnish grammar, participles with -va/-vä behave like adjectives: they take endings to agree with the noun they modify. For example, allattava vauva would be rendered as "a baby to be fed" or "a baby in need of feeding." The form can also appear in compound expressions such as allattavat välineet ("feeding equipment"), though actual everyday usage is rare.

In standard speech, the more common term for breastfeeding is imettäminen, and the related participle imettävä is the more typical way to describe breastfeeding in everyday language. Allattava, by contrast, is mainly encountered in linguistic descriptions of Finnish grammar or in caregiving manuals where a generic "to feed" sense is being discussed. The exact verb behind allattava is not always specified in modern Finnish usage, and some speakers may consider the form archaic or technical rather than common.

Morphology: allattava behaves like other -va/-vä participles. The stem is combined with -va to form the nominative singular, with inflection for number and case following standard Finnish adjectival patterns (allattava, allattavat, allattavan, allattavaa, etc.).