Ilmaisullisissa

Ilmaisullisissa is the inessive plural form of the Finnish adjective ilmaisullinen, meaning expressive or pertaining to expression. It is used to describe a plural noun in the inessive case, and it signals the mode or means by which something is expressed. The form is not a standalone concept; it appears as part of a phrase such as ilmaisullisissa muodoissa or ilmaisullisissa keinoissa.

In Finnish, adjectives agree with the noun they modify in number and case. The inessive plural ending -issa/-issä attaches to the adjective, yielding ilmaisullisissa when the noun it modifies is plural and in the inessive case. The phrase commonly occurs in literary criticism, art discussion, and linguistic analyses to discuss how something is expressed—through form, style, or technique—rather than its subject matter alone. The closely related adverb ilmaisullisesti describes expression in an expressive manner, while ilmaisullisuus denotes expressiveness as a quality or concept.

Usage examples illustrate the typical context. For instance, in discussing a painting or film, one might note that colors, contrasts, and composition are examined ilmaisullisissa keinoissa käytettyjä värejä ja kontrasteja, meaning “in the expressive means used colors and contrasts.” Another example is analyzing narrative techniques in which emotions are conveyed ilmaisullisissa muodoissa. Overall, ilmaisullisissa functions as a grammatical form that anchors discussions of expressive style to specific, plural-inessive contexts.