läpi

Läpi is a Finnish word that functions as a preposition-like particle meaning through or across. It is used after a noun or pronoun to indicate movement or passage through a space, and it can also be used more abstractly to denote thoroughness or completeness in a non-physical sense. In many contexts, läpi helps express that something extends from one side to the other or is examined from start to finish.

Common uses include describing movement through a place, as in tie kulkee läpi kaupungin (the road goes through the city), and describing thorough examination, as in luin raportin läpi (I read the report through/to the end). Läpi also appears in separable verb phrases and compounds, such as käydä läpi (to go through, to review) and katsoa läpi (to skim through or review). These constructions are standard in written and spoken Finnish and are widely understood across registers.

Etymology and related forms: läpi is native Finnish and is closely connected with verbs of crossing or permeating, such as läpäistä (to penetrate, to pass through). The word carries both spatial and figurative meanings, and its usage can shift slightly with context—from physical traversal to a thorough or complete treatment of a topic.

See also: Finnish particles and postpositions; separable verb constructions with läpi. Usage notes emphasize that läpi typically follows the noun or pronoun it references and forms common phrasal verbs that denote traversal or thorough review.