tarkkailen

Tarkkailen is the first-person singular present tense form of the Finnish verb tarkkailla, meaning to observe or monitor something with careful attention over time. It is used to describe ongoing observation rather than a single quick glance.

The verb tarkkailla is commonly used in contexts such as security, health or data monitoring, research, journalism, and everyday situations where continuous attention is required. Using tarkkailen emphasizes that the speaker is actively and currently observing a situation or process.

Etymology and forms: tarkkailla is built from tarkka, meaning careful or precise, with the verbal suffix -illa to indicate performing the action. The present tense conjugation is: minä tarkkailen, sinä tarkkailet, hän tarkkailee, me tarkkailemme, te tarkkailette, he tarkkailevat. The past tense form is tarkkailin ("I monitored"). A related noun is tarkkailu ("monitoring" or "observation"), and the agent noun tarkkailija refers to a person who observes or monitors.

Examples:

- Minä tarkkailen tilannetta koko yön. (I am monitoring the situation all night.)

- Hän tarkkailee kameravalvontaa koko työvuoron. (She monitors the camera surveillance for the entire shift.)

In summary, tarkkailen denotes a current, ongoing act of careful observation, with tarkkailla serving as the base verb and tarkkailija or tarkkailu providing related noun forms.