Partitiivia

Partitiivia is the plural form of partitiivi, the partitive case in Finnish grammar. The term refers to the set of inflected forms used to express partiality, indefiniteness, or non-completion, and to indicate quantities or objects that are not treated as a whole.

The partitiivi has several common functions. It indicates an incomplete or ongoing action, as in haluan omenaa (I want some apple) or olen lukemassa kirjaa (I am reading a book). It is also used in negations, where the object of the verb is typically in the partitiivi, for example en syö omenaa (I do not eat an apple). The partitiivi is the usual object form after many verbs that describe non-final or habitual actions, as well as after certain prepositions and in other specialized constructions.

In terms of quantity, the partitiivi marks indefinite or partial amounts. It is used with mass and uncountable nouns to express an undefined amount, such as juon vettä (I drink water) or minulla on vähän rahaa (I have a little money). When counting or indicating a definite number with a noun, the noun often appears in the partitiivi form, for example kaksi omenaa (two apples) in natural usage, though the exact endings vary with the noun and its stem.

Morphology of partitiivi endings depends on the noun’s class and vowel harmony. A common pattern is partitiivi singular ending -a/-ä, illustrated by omena → omen aa and vesi → vettä. Plural forms vary and are learned on a noun-by-noun basis.

Overall, partitiivi is a fundamental Finnish case used to express partiality, indefiniteness, ongoing actions, and non-quantified quantities, contrasting with more definite or completed meanings conveyed by other cases.