Perusverbiin

Perusverbiin is a term encountered in some Finnish-language discussion and teaching materials to denote the illative form of the noun perusverbi (literally “base verb”). In standard Finnish grammar, however, there is no recognized illative form of a verb, since verbs are not inflected for case in the same way as nouns. As a result, perusverbiin is not a formal grammatical category and is not used in authoritative grammar references. When it appears, the term is usually descriptive or illustrative, or it reflects a nonstandard gloss rather than a conventional verb form.

Etymology and morphology: The construction combines perus- (“base, fundamental”) with verbi (“verb”) and appends the illative-looking ending -in. The illative suffix in Finnish is typically attached to nouns to indicate direction into something, and its application to a verb stem would create a hypothetical or nonstandard form rather than a recognized grammatical variant.

Relation to other concepts: The standard term for the base form of a Finnish verb is the perusmuoto, often referred to as the dictionary form, with the infinitive (infinitiivi) used in many descriptions of verb morphology. The term perusverbiin, if used, should be treated as nonstandard and not as part of formal Finnish grammar.

Usage guidance: If you encounter perusverbiin in a text, consider whether the author intends to discuss the base verb concept, or whether there is a conflation between noun inflection and verb morphology. In formal linguistic analysis, rely on established terms such as perusverbi, perusmuoto, and infinitive.

See also: Finnish grammar, perusverbi, perusmuoto, infinitive, illative.