Perusmerkityksenä

Perusmerkityksenä is the translative form of the Finnish noun perusmerkitys, meaning “the basic meaning” or “core sense.” It is used to express that something is to be understood as the central sense of a word or concept, rather than its secondary or figurative senses. In practice, it marks the principal definition that underpins other meanings in a semantic field.

In dictionaries, linguistic analyses, and academic writing, perusmerkityksenä helps distinguish the central meaning from extended or contextual senses. Example: sanan 'koulu' perusmerkityksenä on "paikka, jossa opetusta annetaan."

The phrase is typically used in formal prose and is compatible with predicates like pidetään or on: “Sanan X perusmerkityksenä on Y” or “X on perusmerkityksenä Y.” It relates to broader topics such as polysemy, sense, and semantic change, rather than being a separate semantic category itself. The construction also illustrates how Finnish marks the role or function of a term, here the role of its basic meaning.