uskoivat

Uskoivat is the third-person plural past tense form of the Finnish verb uskoa, meaning "to believe" or "to trust." It is the indicative mood in the past and corresponds to the English "they believed." The infinitive form is uskoa, the singular past tense is uskoi, and the plural past tense is uskoivat.

Formation and usage notes: In Finnish, the 3rd person plural past tense is typically formed by adding the suffix -ivat to the verb stem, here yielding usko- + -ivat = uskoivat. This pattern appears with many verb groups that end in -oa and related vowels, reflecting standard Finnish past tense conjugation. Uskoivat conveys a completed past action of belief or trust and can describe belief about people, statements, events, or propositions.

Context and nuance: Uskoivat is used when the subject is plural. It can express belief in a claim, trust in a person, or confidence in a situation, and it commonly appears in narrative or reported speech. The phrase often introduces or accompanies dependent clauses (for example with että "that") or direct objects indicating what was believed.

Examples:

- He uskoivat, että sade loppuisi pian.

- Koululaiset uskoivat opettajansa sanoihin.

- He uskoivat Jumalaan.

See also: uskoa, verb conjugation in Finnish, Finnish past tenses.