napsauta

Napsauta is the imperative form of the Finnish verb napsauttaa, meaning to click or to snap. In digital and computing contexts, napsauta serves as a direct instruction telling a user to perform a mouse click or a touch tap on a user interface element.

The word derives from the onomatopoeic sense of a short, sharp sound associated with a mechanical switch or button, which in Finnish has come to denote the act of engaging a clickable element. In user interfaces, napsauta appears in menus, prompts, tutorials, and help articles as a concise directive.

In practice, napsauta is commonly paired with demonstratives or nouns such as "tätä" (this), "OK", or "kuvaketta" (icon). For example: "Napsauta tätä avataksesi uuden ikkunan." "Napsauta OK vahvistaaksesi." In contrast, "Paina" is often used for physical buttons, while the loanwords "klikkaa" or "klikkaa" are more common in informal contexts.

Napsauta is considered standard Finnish UI language and is widely understood among Finnish speakers. Its use tends to be prevalent in formal documentation and software interfaces, whereas "klikkaa" or "klikkaa" may appear in consumer-oriented products. The term reflects a broader practice in Finnish to distinguish actions on digital versus physical controls.