haaveilla

Haaveilla is a Finnish verb meaning to dream, to fantasize, or to have aspirations. It denotes inner wishes or imagined possibilities, often focusing on ideals or long-term goals rather than concrete plans. The related noun haave means a dream or aspiration.

Usage patterns are centered on dreaming about something rather than sleeping dreams. It can express daydreams, hopes, or cherished goals. Common constructions include haaveilla jostakin or haaveilla something, with the object often in the elative or partitive case, depending on nuance. For example, haaveilen lomasta means “I dream of a vacation,” and haaveili uudesta urasta means “he dreamed of a new career.” The verb may also appear with other case forms to specify the content of the dream.

Conjugation is regular for Finnish. Present tense forms are haaveilen, haaveilet, haaveilee, haaveilemme, haaveilette, haaveilevat. Past tense forms are haaveilin, haaveilit, haaveili, haaveilimme, haaveilitte, haaveilivat. The perfect form is haaveillut, with the auxiliary olla: olen haaveillut (“I have dreamed/imagined”).

Nuance distinguishes haaveilla from uneksia (to dream during sleep) and from more concrete planning verbs like suunnitella or aikoa. Haaveilla emphasizes desire, imagination, and aspiration rather than action.

See also: haave (noun), unelma (dream or longing).