lähestyivät

Lähestyivät is the past tense form of the Finnish verb lähestyä, meaning to approach or draw near. Specifically, lähestyivät is the imperfect indicative, active voice, 3rd person plural. It is used when referring to multiple subjects that performed the action of approaching in the past.

In Finnish, lähestyä belongs to the class of verbs that form the imperfect plural with the ending -ivät. The form combines the verb stem lähesty- with this ending, yielding -ivät in the past tense. The corresponding present tense form for they is lähestyvät, and the singular past tense form is lähestyi. The infinitive is lähestyä, and the past participle is lähestynyt.

Usage notes:

- Lähestyivät can describe physical movement toward a person or place, as in they approached the house.

- It can also be used metaphorically, for example they approached a topic or a problem.

- The form requires a plural subject; for a single subject, use the singular past tense lähestyi.

Examples:

- He lähestyivät taloa varovasti. (They approached the house cautiously.)

- He lähestyivät toisiaan nauraen. (They approached each other, laughing.)

Lähestyivät is one of several forms derived from lähestyä; understanding its imperfect plural form helps with interpreting narratives and reported speech in Finnish.