Verb Type 5 (-ita/-itä)

Level 2

Finnish Verb Type 5 includes verbs ending in -ita/-itä. To conjugate them, you remove the -ta/-tä and add -tse- before the personal ending.

How It Works

Verb Type 5 is a relatively small but important category containing high-frequency verbs like tarvita (to need) and valita (to choose).

1. Stem Formation:
To form the present tense stem, follow these steps:

Take the infinitive: tarvita
Remove the final -ta: tarvi-
Add the expansion -tse-: tarvitse-
Add the personal ending: tarvitsen (I need)

2. Third Person Singular and Negation:
In the 3rd person singular (hän), the final vowel -e is doubled: Hän tarvitsee. For the negative form, use the connegative, which is just the expanded stem: En tarvitse.

3. Past Tense (Imperfect):
In the past tense, the stem vowel -e- changes to -i-. Note that in the 3rd person singular, the final vowel is not doubled: Hän tarvitsi.
Example: Minä tarvitsin (I needed).

4. Past Participle:
The past participle for Type 5 verbs ends in -nnut/-nnyt in the singular and -nneet in the plural. You remove the -ta/-tä and add the ending.
Example: tarvita → tarvinnut (singular) / tarvinneet (plural), valita → valinnut / valinneet.

5. The "ita-trap":
Be careful! Not all verbs ending in -ita/-itä are Type 5. Common verbs like selvitä (to survive/clear up), hävitä (to lose/disappear), and levitä (to spread) are actually Verb Type 4 verbs. They conjugate as selviän, not selvitsen.

6. Passive
The passive present does not use the -tse- expansion: tarvita → tarvitaan, valita → valitaan. The negative passive is ei tarvita, ei valita.

7. Spoken Variants
Common spoken variants include mä tarviin and mä tartten. These have their own regional histories and paradigms; they are not an instruction to delete -tse- from every type 5 verb. Learn the standard paradigm tarvitsen, tarvitsin, tarvinnut alongside the spoken forms you encounter.

Further Connections

verb type 2 (-da/-dä): Contrasts with verb type 5 in conjugation rules.

Examples (6)

Minä tarvitsen uuden tietokoneen.
I need a new computer.
Word by Word: I need new computer.
The verb 'tarvita' (to need) adds '-tse-' to the root 'tarvi-' before the ending '-n'.
Mainitsimme asiasta eilen.
We mentioned the matter yesterday.
Word by Word: We mentioned about-matter yesterday.
In the past tense, the stem vowel '-e-' changes to '-i-': 'mainitse-' becomes 'mainitsi-'.
En häiritse sinua nyt.
I am not disturbing you now.
Word by Word: Not-I disturb you now.
The negative form uses the connegative 'häiritse', which is the expanded stem without a personal ending.
Oletko jo valinnut lahjan?
Have you already chosen a gift?
Word by Word: Have-you already chosen gift?
The perfect tense uses the past participle 'valinnut', formed by adding '-nnut' to the root 'vali-'.
Hän hallitsee tilanteen hyvin.
He/she controls the situation well.
Word by Word: He/she controls situation well.
In the 3rd person singular, the final 'e' of the stem 'hallitse-' is doubled.
Selviän tästä kyllä.
I will survive this.
Word by Word: I-survive from-this indeed.
Watch out! 'Selvitä' is an 'ita-trap' verb; it follows Verb Type 4 rules (selviän) instead of Type 5 (selvitsen).

Common Mistakes

Forgetting the -tse- expansion and treating it like Type 4.
Minä tarvian apua.
Minä tarvitsen apua.
Do not apply the type 4 stem pattern mechanically to tarvita. Type 5 requires the '-tse-' syllable in standard Finnish.
Applying consonant gradation to the stem.
Minä meritsen.
Minä merkitsen.
Type 5 verbs are stable; the 'k' in 'merkitä' does not change or disappear when conjugated.
Using the wrong past participle ending.
Olen valitnut.
Olen valinnut.
In the past participle, the 't' from the infinitive stem assimilates into the 'n' of the ending, resulting in '-nnut/-nnyt'.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Verb Type 5 (-ita/-itä)Level 2

Learn This First

To learn Verb Type 5, you need to understand Finnish vowel harmony to choose between -ita and -itä. You also need to be familiar with the standard personal endings and the general concept of Finnish verb types, as type 5 involves a specific stem change where the infinitive ending is replaced by -tse- before adding personal endings.