kaltaiseksi

Kaltaiseksi is a Finnish grammatical form of the adjective kaltaisa, meaning “like” or “similar.” It is the translative case of kaltaisa and is used to express a change into a state of being like someone or something. It is commonly used with verbs that denote becoming or turning into, especially tulla: Hän halusi tulla isän kaltaiseksi (He wanted to become like his father). The construction typically places a noun in the genitive before kaltaiseksi to specify the point of comparison, for example veljensä kaltaiseksi (like his brother).

Morphology in general: kaltaisa has several case forms, and kaltaiseksi is the translative form used to indicate a change into a state of likeness. Other common forms include kaltaisessa (inessive, “in a state of being similar”), kaltaisesta (elative, “from being similar”), kaltaisen (genitive), kaltaista (partitive), kaltaisena (essive), and so on, following standard Finnish adjective declension. The root kalta- expresses likeness, and the translative form is built by adding the suffix -ksi with an connecting vowel, resulting in kaltaiseksi.

Etymology: kaltais- derives from kaltaisuus, a noun meaning “likeness” or “similarity.” The form kaltaiseksi reflects the productive Finnish pattern for turning adjectives into a state-changing form.

Usage: Kaltaiseksi is neutral in tone and widely used in written and spoken Finnish. It appears in descriptive clauses, comparisons, and statements about identity or role, often with a preceding genitive noun indicating the source of similarity.

See also: kaltaisuus, kaltaisa.