mõtestav

Mõtestav is an Estonian present participle and adjective formed from the verb mõtestama, meaning to test, examine, or evaluate. As an attributive modifier, mõtestav describes something intended for testing or related to testing. In everyday use it typically precedes the noun, for example: mõtestav lähenemine (an experimental/testing approach) and mõtestav uuring (a study that tests something). The form inflects like an ordinary Estonian adjective and agrees with its noun in number and case (mõtestava meetodi, mõtestava uuringu, etc.).

Etymology and meaning: The -av participial suffix attaches to mõtestama to yield a present active participle that denotes action connected with testing or evaluation. The sense is closer to "testing" or "experimental" than to "thoughtful," and it is commonly used in academic, research, and development contexts. It is distinct from mõtlev (thinking) and from eksperimentaalne (experimental), though contexts may overlap.

Usage: Mõtestav occurs in science, education, software development, and policy work to label processes, methods, or results that involve verification, validation, or hypothesis testing. Common collocations include mõtestav meetod, mõtestav uuring, and mõtestav lähenemine. It can also describe a test itself as mõtestav katse, though this is less frequent.

See also: mõtestamine, katse, meetod, eksperiment, eksperimentaalne.