Piikillä

Piikillä is the Finnish adessive singular form of the noun piikki, meaning spike or pointed projection. In Finnish grammar, the adessive case -llä/-llä can indicate a location or the means by which an action is performed. Consequently, piikillä can mean either “on a spike” (a location) or “with a spike” (the instrument used). The corresponding plural form is piikeillä, used for “on spikes” or “with spikes.”

Usage and meaning

Piikillä is most common in descriptive or technical contexts, such as carpentry, metalworking, archaeology, or other fields where a spike serves as a tool or mounting method. When used to express instrumentality, piikillä answers questions like “with what?” or “by means of what?” For example, "Hän teki reiän piikillä puuhun" translates to "He made a hole in the wood with a spike." In other sentences, the phrase can describe a piece being fastened or pierced by means of a spike, e.g., "Kappale kiinnitettiin piikillä."

Etymology and forms

Piikillä is derived from piikki (spike) with the adessive suffix -llä. The word forms align with Finnish patterns for indicating instrumentality and location. Related forms include piikki (nominative), piikin (genitive), piikkiä (partitive), and piikeillä (adessive plural).

Notes

Piikillä is primarily used in contexts where the spike is literal or metaphorically sharp or pointed. In everyday speech, more common expressions may be used to describe similar actions with other tools, but piikillä remains correct for describing the use of a spike as a tool.