Tunteilla

Tunteilla is the plural adessive form of the Finnish noun tunteet, meaning feelings or emotions. It is not a standalone concept with its own meaning; rather, it is a grammatical form used in Finnish to indicate location or a state connected to emotions.

Morphology and usage: In Finnish, the adessive case signals location or state, with the plural suffix -illa/-illä. Thus tunteet in the adessive becomes tunteilla, literally “on feelings.” It may refer to where feelings are present or the condition associated with them, especially in figurative or literary contexts. In ordinary speech, referring to feelings typically uses nominative or partitive forms (tunteet, tunteita) rather than tunteilla, but the adessive form can appear for emphasis, nuance, or personification.

Usage notes: The form is more common in writing than in casual conversation. It can convey emphasis about the role of emotions in a situation, or be used as a subject in a somewhat personified or metaphorical construction (for example, in statements like “Tunteilla on suuri merkitys”). When used with a locative sense, it often accompanies other adessive phrases such as “Keskustelussa” or “tilanteessa.”

Examples:

- Tunteilla on keskeinen rooli draaman kerronnassa.

- Keskustelussa tunteilla on ollut suuri vaikutus ihmisten päätöksiin.

See also: tunteet (feelings), Finnish grammar, adessive case.