Hetkittäisinä

Hetkittäisinä is a Finnish grammatical form that appears as the plural essive case of the adjective hetkittäinen, meaning momentary or temporary. In Finnish, the essive case describes a state or role “as” something. The plural essive ending -inä/-inä yields hetkittäisinä, used when the subject is plural and described in a momentary or provisional sense.

Etymology and morphology: hetkittäinen derives from hetki (moment) with the suffixes that form adjectives, combined with the essive plural ending -inä. The singular essive is hetkittäisenä (as momentary), while the plural is hetkittäisinä (as momentaries). This construction aligns with other Finnish noun-adjective pairs that take an essive form to express a temporary state.

Usage: hetkittäisinä is primarily found in formal, literary, or specialized contexts rather than everyday speech. It describes multiple items or concepts viewed collectively as temporary or transient. Common collocations include phrases with plural nouns in the Essive: for example, hetkittäisinä lausuntoina (as momentary statements) or hetkittäisinä ratkaisuina (as temporary solutions). The form underscores that the described states or roles are not permanent.

Relation to related forms: hetkittäinen serves as the base adjective. The singular essive is hetkittäisenä, and the adverbial or distributive equivalents include forms like hetkittäin (intermittently) or hetkittäisesti in more limited uses. Hetkittäisinä specifically marks a plural, temporary predicate in clauses with a copula or equivalent verb.

Frequency and register: hetkittäisinä is a niche, formal, or literary term. It is not common in colloquial Finnish, but it may appear in essays, academic writing, or literary prose when a plural, momentary nuance is intended.