määtöinen

Mätäinen is a Finnish adjective meaning rotten or decayed, typically describing organic matter that has undergone decomposition due to moisture, warmth, or microbial action. It denotes a pronounced level of spoilage and is used in descriptive writing to imply rot beyond simple aging. The term is commonly applied to foodstuffs such as fruit, meat, or fish, as well as other decayed substances like wood or organic waste; phrases include mätä kala (rotten fish) or mätä liha (rotten meat). In figurative use, mätäinen can describe corruption or deterioration in systems, institutions, or moral matters, for example mätä järjestelmä (a decayed system).

Etymology and form: mätäinen is formed from the noun mätä, rot, with the common attributive suffix -inen, which yields adjectives describing a characteristic. Thus mätäinen literally conveys “rotten/decayed by rot.”

Usage and nuance: mätäinen is a descriptive term and is more common in written, formal, or literary Finnish than in everyday casual speech. It conveys a strong degree of spoilage and is suitable for both literal descriptions of decay and metaphorical uses to express decline or corruption.

See also: mätä, mätäneminen, mätäntyminen. These related terms cover the broader concepts of rot and decomposition in Finnish, including processes and states of decay.