hengitysten

Hengitysten is the genitive plural form of the Finnish noun hengitys, meaning respiration or breathing. It is used to indicate possession or relation to breaths or respirations, and appears in phrases that describe aspects of the breathing process.

In everyday and professional language, hengitysten refers to multiple breaths or aspects of respiration. Common usages include expressions such as hengitysten säätely (regulation of respiration), hengitysten rytmi (breathing rhythm), and hengitysten kesto (duration of breaths). The form signals a plural possessive or associative relationship with breaths rather than a single breath.

From a biological perspective, respiration is the process by which living organisms exchange gases with their environment. In humans, it involves inhalation (inspiratio) and exhalation (exspiratio), enabling oxygen uptake and carbon dioxide removal. The activity is primarily controlled by the brainstem, but can be influenced by voluntary actions and by chemical cues in the blood. Differences in rate and depth of breathing occur in response to activity, health status, and metabolic demands, and are reflected in discussions of hengitysten when describing multiple breaths or breathing patterns over time.

Etymology and usage notes: hengitysten is formed as the genitive plural of hengitys, with the suffix -sten marking plural genitive. It is a grammatical form rather than a separate concept, used in medical, scientific, and descriptive Finnish to discuss breaths or aspects of respiration. See also hengitys for the base concept of breathing.