myöhäiseen

Myöhäiseen is a Finnish grammatical form rather than a separate lexical item. It is the illative singular form of the adjective myöhäinen, which means late or belated. In use, myöhäiseen signals movement toward a late time or a late part of a period, and it appears most often in phrases describing timing rather than as a standalone noun.

Grammatically, myöhäiseen functions as an adjective in the illative case. The illative is used in Finnish to indicate direction into something, such as into a time frame or a point in time. When the adjective modifies a time noun, the form adapts to the illative ending, producing phrases such as myöhäiseen aikaan or myöhäiseen iltaan. These constructions convey the sense of “to the late …” or “in the late part of …” and are common in spoken and written Finnish, especially in narration or descriptions of events occurring late in the day or period.

Etymology and usage notes: myöhäiseen derives from the root myöhäinen, meaning late. The illative singular form commonly ends in -iseen for adjectives of the -inen class, as in myöhäiseen. This form is primarily functional in describing timing; it is not used as a separate noun. In everyday language, speakers may prefer fixed expressions such as “myöhään” (late) or phrases like “myöhäiseen aikaan” to convey late timing.

Examples:

- Hän saapui myöhäiseen aikaan. (He arrived at a late hour.)

- Me menimme myöhäiseen iltaan saakka. (We went on into the late evening.)

- Myöhäiseen aikaan alkoi tapahtua … (In the late period, …)

See also: Finnish grammar, illative case, myöhäinen.