pienempiin

Pienempiin is a Finnish inflected form of the adjective pienempi, meaning “smaller.” It is the illative plural form used to modify nouns in the illative case, signaling movement toward or into smaller versions of something. In other words, pienempiin translates roughly to “to smaller ones” or “into smaller ones” when attached to a suitable noun.

Grammatical function and formation: In Finnish, adjectives agree with the nouns they modify in case and number. The illative plural suffix is -iin, so the combination pienempi + in yields pienempiin. This form is not typically used on its own as a stand-alone word; it requires a following noun in illative plural, such as tiloihin (spaces into) or ryhmiin (groups into).

Usage and examples: Pienempiin is common in descriptive and instructional contexts where size or grouping is being contrasted. Examples include:

- mennä pienempiin tiloihin (to move into smaller spaces)

- siirtyä pienempiin ryhmiin (to move to smaller groups)

- pienempiin paikkoihin kohdentaminen (targeting to smaller places)

In a sentence, pienempiin modifies a noun in illative plural, for example: He valitsivat pienempiin tiloihin sopivat ratkaisut (They chose solutions suitable for smaller spaces).

Notes: Pienempiin by itself is an incomplete phrase and relies on the accompanying illative noun. It is a grammatical tool rather than a separate lexical item, used to express direction toward smaller entities within the Finnish case system.

See also: Finnish grammar, adjectives, illative case, comparative forms.