määrittele

Määrittele is the imperative form of the Finnish verb määritellä, meaning to define or to specify. It is used to issue a direct instruction to provide a definition or to describe the precise meaning of a term, concept, or boundary. The form is commonly found in educational, technical, and legal contexts.

In Finnish, imperative forms are used to give commands or requests. Määrittele addresses a single listener, while a plural imperative is used for multiple addressees; the exact spelling varies with standard Finnish conjugation. The word is often paired with objects such as a term or a concept, for example in phrases like määrittele käsite selkeästi or määrittele termi ennen jatkoa.

Morphology and related forms: the infinitive is määritellä, the noun meaning definition is määritelmä, and the passive participle is määritelty (defined). The verb follows regular Finnish conjugation in other tenses: minä määrittelen, sinä määrittelet, hän määrittelee, me määrittelemme, te määrittelette, he määrittelevät.

Usage notes: määrittele is most natural in instructional, academic, or formal settings where precision is required. It can introduce a task, a specification requirement, or a request to clarify a term before proceeding. In translations, it is often rendered as “define” or “specify” in English, depending on the context.

Examples:

- Määrittele käsite selkeästi. (Define the concept clearly.)

- Ennen raportin kirjoittamista määrittele termit uudelleen. (Before writing the report, redefine the terms.)