Pluskvamperfekteja

Pluskvamperfekteja is the partitive plural form of the Finnish term pluskvamperfekti, the past perfect tense. In Finnish grammar, the past perfect expresses an action that had already been completed before another past event. The plural form is used when discussing multiple instances of this tense or when referring to the concept in a general sense.

Formation and form. The past perfect is formed with the imperfect form of the auxiliary verb olla (to be) plus the past participle of the main verb. The auxiliary reflects the subject, and the participle agrees in number with the subject. Examples: olin syönyt (I had eaten), olimme syöneet (we had eaten), hän oli kirjoittanut (he had written), he olivat kirjoittaneet (they had written). Negative forms are en ollut syönyt and emme olleet syöneet, for instance.

Usage. Pluskvamperfekti indicates that an action was completed before a specified past time or another past event. It is common in subordinate clauses introduced by kun, ennen kuin, or kunnes. For example: Olin jo syönyt, kun hän soitti. I had already eaten when he called. Another example: En ollut nähnyt elokuvaa ennen kuin se sai palkintoja. I had not seen the film before it won awards.

Relation to other tenses. The pluskvamperfekti contrasts with the perfect (olen syönyt), which relates to the present, and with the imperfect (olin/olimme), which places events in the past without the anteriority nuance. In narrative, the pluskvamperfekti helps sequence past events by marking an action as completed before another past moment.

See also. Finnish grammar; tense and aspect; participles.