liikuttamalla

Liikuttamalla is a Finnish adverbial participle form of the verb liikuttaa, meaning by moving or through movement. In Finnish, the -malla/-mällä suffix is used to express means or method, so liikuttamalla translates roughly to “by moving” or “through moving.” The construction is commonly used to describe how an action is performed without starting a new finite clause.

Formation and usage

The form is created by attaching the participial suffix to the verb stem. It functions like an adverbial modifier, indicating the instrument, method, or manner by which an action occurs. It can introduce a cause-and-effect relationship or specify the means in a compact way, often replacing a separate subordinate clause in descriptive or instructional writing. Examples include phrases such as “Hän vastasi liikuttamalla päätään” (He answered by moving his head) and “Käyttäminen tapahtuu liikuttamalla hiirtä” (The operation is done by moving the mouse).

In practice, liikuttamalla appears in neutral, informative text, including manuals, descriptions, and explanatory passages. It is distinct from general present participles like liikkuva (moving) that describe ongoing action, as liikuttamalla expresses the method or means of an action rather than a state.

Nuances and considerations

As a grammatical device, liikuttamalla helps create concise sentences by linking actions with their mode of execution. It is most natural in written Finnish and may be less common in very formal or highly standardized prose where more explicit clauses are preferred. When translating or paraphrasing, an equivalent English rendering is typically “by moving” or “by doing so through movement,” depending on context.