vähenevat

Vähenevat is a Finnish verb form that expresses that something is decreasing or becoming fewer. It is the third-person plural present indicative form of the verb vähentyä, meaning to diminish or reduce in size, amount, or frequency.

Etymology and forms: Vähentyä derives from the root vähä-, meaning few or small, with the -nty- suffix that forms intransitive verbs. The form vähenevat specifically marks that the subject is plural and performing the action in the present. The corresponding singular present form is vähenee, while the past participle is vähentynyt.

Usage: The form is commonly used in descriptive or analytical contexts, such as statistics, economics, and demographics, to describe a reduction in counts, rates, or intensities. It is typically used with plural subjects, for example when referring to multiple items, categories, or indicators. In contrast, single-subject sentences use vähenee. The phrase can appear in news reports, research summaries, and policy discussions to indicate a trend toward smaller values.

Examples:

- Kustannukset sekä päästöt vähenevät. (Costs and emissions are decreasing.)

- Työpaikkojen määrä vähenee jonkin verran vuodesta toiseen. (The number of jobs decreases somewhat year over year.)

- Hiilidioksidipäästöt vähenevät useissa maissa.

Related terms: vähentyä (to decrease), vähäinen (small, minor), vähentyminen (decrease, decline). The word is part of a family describing reduction in various contexts and contrasts with forms like rikkarikuoivat tai kasvavat, which describe growth.

See also: Finnish verb conjugation, Finnish numerical and statistical vocabulary, etymology of Finnish periphrastic forms.