Passiivisempaa

Passiivisempaa is the partitive singular form of the Finnish comparative adjective passiivisempi, meaning more passive. In Finnish grammar, adjectives can take comparative forms to express a higher degree of a quality, and passiivisempi describes a greater level of passivity. The specific form passiivisempaa is used when the adjective modifies a noun that is in the partitive case or in constructions where partitive syntax is required.

Use and meaning

Passiivisempaa describes something that is more passive in tone, style, or behavior than another item. It is commonly found in linguistic analysis, stylistic critique, or discourse about translation and writing style. The focus is on the degree of passivity rather than on a grammatical voice; it does not create a separate passive construction but serves to qualify a noun such as kieli, ilmaisu, or sävy.

Morphology and examples

The base adjective is passiivinen. Its comparative form is passiivisempi, and the corresponding partitive singular form is passiivisempaa. Examples:

- Tekstin passiivisempää ilmaisua kritisoidaan usein, koska se voi heikentää suorasukaisuutta.

- Tässä kappaleessa on passiivisempaa kieltä kuin aiemmissa osissa.

Relation to related terms

Passiivisempi explains a higher degree of passivity relative to another form described as passiivi tai passiivinen ääni. It is a descriptive, comparative usage rather than a distinct grammatical category; context determines whether the phrase appears with a noun in partitive or with other case forms.

In summary, passiivisempaa is the grammatical form used to express “more passive” in Finnish when describing nouns in partitive or similar indefinite contexts, and it commonly appears in analyses of language style and tone.