muunlaisiin

Muunlaisiin is a Finnish adjective form, the illative plural of muunlainen, meaning “to other kinds” or “to different kinds.” It is used to indicate direction toward or applicability to other types of things, usually with a noun in the illative case following it, such as käyttötarkoituksiin, konteksteihin, or tarpeisiin.

Etymology and morphology: muunlainen is built from the stem muu meaning “other” and the suffix -lainen, which forms adjectives meaning “of a kind” or “of the type.” The illative plural ending -iin attaches to the adjective, yielding muunlaisiin, used when the governed noun is plural and in illative case (into/onto other kinds). The corresponding forms include muunlaisen (singular illative), muunlaisiin (plural illative), muunlaisten (genitive plural), and muunlaiset (nominative plural).

Usage notes: Muunlaisiin typically appears with nouns in illative case and conveys contrast with the speaker’s reference category. Examples include:

- Tämä laite on suunniteltu muunlaisiin käyttötarkoituksiin. (This device is designed for other kinds of uses.)

- Tutkimus tarkastelee muunlaisiin konteksteihin liittyviä ilmiöitä. (The study examines phenomena related to other kinds of contexts.)

The term is common in formal or technical Finnish; in everyday speech, speakers may prefer synonyms such as erilaiset or erilaisiin uses, depending on the context. The contrastive nuance of muunlaisiin centers on variety and alternatives rather than a single, specific type.

Related forms: muunlainen (singular), muunlaiset (nominative plural), muunlaisten (genitive plural).