Todellista

Todellista is the singular partitive form of the Finnish adjective todellinen, meaning real or true. In Finnish, adjectives agree with the noun they modify in number and case, and todellista is used when the noun is in the partitive case or in indefinite contexts. It is commonly found in phrases such as todellista laatua (real quality), todellista rahaa (real money), or se toi todellista iloa (it brought real joy).

Grammatically, todellista is the form you encounter with nouns that appear in partitive constructions or after negation, where the partitive often expresses an incomplete or non-definite quantity. The adjective’s other forms include todellinen (nominative), todellisen (genitive/partitive feminine), and different endings for plural. The choice of form reflects Finnish’s rich system of case and number agreement.

Usage and nuance: todellista emphasizes authenticity or genuineness, sometimes contrasting with fake, artificial, or hypothetical equivalents. It is common in everyday speech, journalism, marketing, and literature to highlight the real nature or quality of something.

Etymology and related terms: todellinen derives from todellisuus (reality, actuality), with related words such as totuus (truth), totta (true), and aito (genuine). The concept centers on what is real or true in a given context.

Translations: In English, todellista can be rendered as real, genuine, actual, or true, depending on context. Common collocations include todellista laatua, todellista arvoa, todellista iloa.

See also: todellisuus, totuus, totta, aito, oikea.