Määrällisten

Määrällisten is a Finnish linguistic term used to describe a grammatical class of words that express quantity or scope and function as determiners for nouns. In Finnish grammar, this category is often referred to as määrälliset sanat (quantifiers) and includes numerals (lukusanat) as well as a broader set of determiners that indicate amount, frequency, or scope.

The scope of määrälliset sanat encompasses cardinal numbers (three, five), ordinal numbers (third, fourth), and a range of quantifiers such as kaikki (all), monet (many), useat (several), harvat (few), and jokainen (each). These words directly modify nouns and typically appear before the noun they quantify. For example: "kolme omenaa" (three apples), "kaikki oppilaat" (all students). They inflect like other Finnish modifiers, agreeing with the noun in case and number, and they can interact with other grammatical features such as negation or partitive constructions.

In Finnish syntax, määrälliset sanat provide essential information about the scope of reference in noun phrases and help structure meaning without relying on separate determiners as in some other languages. Their behavior is a standard topic in Finnish language teaching and descriptive linguistics, illustrating how quantity and specificity are encoded within noun phrases.

See also Finnish grammar, lukusanat, järjestysluvut, and määrälliset sanat (quantifiers). For further reading, consult introductory Finnish grammar references that discuss noun phrase structure, numeral inflection, and determiner usage.