Rivistöön

Rivistöön is a Finnish illative form of rivistö, a noun meaning a row, line, or formation of people or objects. The base sense covers a sequence such as a line of seats, a row of houses, or a military formation. In Finnish, rivistö refers to a coordinated arrangement or line, and rivistöön expresses movement into that line or joining the formation.

Etymology and form

The word rivistö comes from rivistö with the illative suffix -öön, used to indicate direction toward a place or state. The root rivistö is related to riv- meaning “row” or “line,” while the -stö/-istö suffix forms nouns denoting a state, condition, or collective arrangement. The illative rivistöön therefore signals “into the line/formation.”

Usage

Rivistöön is used in contexts describing people or objects entering, joining, or taking place within a line or formation. It appears in formal and descriptive language, particularly around instructions for assembly, drills, or crowd management. Common collocations include asettua rivistöön (to position oneself in the line), liittyä rivistöön (to join the ranks), and ryhmittyä rivistöön (to form into a line).

Examples

- Sotilaat siirtyivät rivistöön. — The soldiers moved into the ranks.

- Koulu pyysi oppilaita siirtymään rivistöön harjoituksen alkuun. — The school asked students to move into the line for the drill.

Notes

Rivistöön can refer to lines of people, seats, or objects arranged in a row, and is typical of formal or descriptive Finnish rather than everyday colloquial speech.

See also

rivistö, rivi, muodostelma.