inessiivikohta

Inessiivikohta, or the inessive case in Finnish grammar, marks location inside something. It is used to express static placement, equivalent to asking “where in?” or “inside” in English. As one of the locative cases, it describes a position within a place, container, or abstract space, and it is distinct from cases that indicate movement or contact.

The inessiivi has a singular suffix of -ssa or -ssä, chosen according to vowel harmony with the noun stem. The plural forms are -issa or -issä. For example: talossa (in the house), vedessä (in the water), taloissa (in the houses), vesissä (in the waters). Some stems undergo sound changes in the process, such as vedestä vs. vedessä, illustrating the effect of vowel harmony and inflection on spelling.

Usage notes: The inessiivi is commonly used for places, enclosed spaces, and containers, as well as more abstract spaces. Typical sentences include: Olen talossa (I am in the house), Kissa on laatikossa (The cat is in the box), Vesi on lasissa (The water is in the glass). The inessiivi is contrasted with illative, which denotes movement into something (e.g., taloon, into the house), and with adessive, which can denote location on or at a surface (e.g., pöydällä, on the table). Together with other locative cases, the inessiivi helps express nuanced spatial relationships in Finnish.