Suffixistä

Suffixistä is the elative singular form of the Finnish noun suffixi, meaning “from the suffix.” The term suffixi denotes a bound morpheme added to a word to modify its form or meaning; in Finnish linguistics it is used to discuss word formation and affixation.

Morphology and usage: In Finnish, the elative case (ending -stä) expresses origin, source, or a topic in certain constructions, such as when speaking about something. For the noun suffixi, the elative singular is suffixistä, while the elative plural is suffixeistä. Other common forms include suffixin (genitive singular) and suffixit (nominative plural). Words ending in -i often show a vowel change before the elative suffix, yielding forms like suffixistä in the singular and suffixeistä in the plural.

Examples: Puhuin suffixistä. This means “I talked about the suffix.” Keskustelu suffixistä jatkui koko illan. This means “The discussion about the suffix continued all evening.” These illustrations reflect how suffixistä marks the topic or origin in discourse about linguistic units.

Usage and context: Suffixistä appears primarily in linguistic discussion, language-learning material, and formal writing. It is a technical form that readers and listeners encounter when analyzing morphology, affixation, or word formation in Finnish. In everyday speech, speakers may refer to suffixi in general terms rather than focusing on specific case forms.

See also: suffix, Finnish grammar, cases (Finnish).