Erillisinä

Erillisinä is a Finnish word form derived from the adjective erillinen, meaning separate or distinct. In Finnish grammar, erillisinä functions as the plural essive form of erillinen, used to express a state or role of multiple items described as “as separate ones.” The essive case often indicates a temporary or descriptive status, similar to “as” in English.

In practical usage, erillisinä appears in phrases that denote separation or distinction of parts, items, or entities. It is commonly found with nouns in compounds such as erillisinä kappaleina or erillisinä osina, meaning “as separate pieces” or “as separate parts.” The form is typically used in instructions, documentation, or analytic writing where items must be treated independently from others.

Comparison with related forms helps clarify its use. The adverbial form erillisesti conveys the action of doing something separately, while erillinen is the base adjective meaning “separate.” Erillisinä therefore situates the separation as a state attributed to more than one item in the essive sense.

For readers encountering erillisinä, the key point is that it marks a plural, state-based designation of separation. It is especially relevant in technical, logistical, and methodological contexts where the specification of separate components or categories is important. In everyday language, more general alternatives like erillisesti (adverb) or erillinen (singular) may be preferred depending on the sentence structure.

See also: erillinen, erillisesti, essive case.