polttanut

Polttanut is the past participle form of the Finnish verb polttaa, meaning to burn or, in a colloquial sense, to smoke. As a participle, polttanut expresses a completed action and is used with the auxiliary olla (to have). For example, olen polttanut means “I have burned” or, in the context of tobacco, “I have smoked.”

In Finnish, verbs of this class form perfect tenses with the short, unconjugated participle polttanut, which does not change for gender and agrees with number via the auxiliary olla. Common constructions include: olen polttanut, olet polttanut, on polttanut, olemme polttaneet, olette polttaneet, ovat polttaneet. The meaning is determined by the object: it can refer to burning something (e.g., kynttilä, poltettu kynttilä) or to smoking (e.g., tupakkaa).

Polttanut should be distinguished from poltettu, which is the passive past participle used for things that have been burned by someone or something else, as in kynttilä on poltettu (the candle has been burned). Polttanut, by contrast, emphasizes that the subject performed the act of burning or smoking.

Etymology traces polttaa to the Finnish root meaning to burn, with polttanut forming part of the regular perfect tense system in Finnish grammar. It is a common form in written and spoken Finnish, especially in narratives describing past actions related to burning or smoking. See also polttaa, poltto.