käänduda

Käänduda is a verb in the Estonian language that denotes the process of taking inflected forms. It is used to describe how a word changes its form to express grammatical categories such as case, number, person, or tense. In linguistic descriptions, käänduda is the intransitive counterpart to the process of inflection, and it is often introduced in grammar discussions, dictionaries, and educational materials rather than in everyday speech.

The related noun käändumine refers to the act or process of inflection, while käänded denotes the various inflected forms or the concept of grammatical cases themselves. The root käänd- is linked to the idea of turning or bending, a metaphorical reference to how a word “turns” into different forms to fit its syntactic role. This terminology is central to Estonian morphology, where many words undergo systematic changes to align with sentence structure.

In practice, käänduda is typically used with a subject that is the word or phrase undergoing inflection. For example, a grammarian might say that a noun käändub when it takes a different case ending. The verb conforms to standard Estonian conjugation patterns, but its usage remains primarily within linguistic analysis rather than daily conversation.

See also: Estonian grammar, inflection, declension, käänded, käändumine.