pienet

Pienet is a Finnish adjective form meaning “small” or “little” in the plural. It is commonly used to describe plural nouns, as in pienet lapset (small children) or pienet koirat (small dogs). The word can also function as a substantive, referring to “the small ones” when the noun is understood from context, for example in narrative or conversational style.

Etymology and form: pien-, the root meaning “small,” combines with the standard Finnish plural ending -et to produce pienet in the nominative plural. Finnish adjectives agree in number with the nouns they modify, so pienet corresponds to plural subjects or objects. The base adjective pieni is the singular form.

Usage and style: In everyday Finnish, pienet is typically attached to a noun (pienet elintarvikkeet, pienet eläimet). Using pienet as a bare noun is less common and more typical in literary, poetic, or emphatic contexts where the smallness of a group is foregrounded without repeating a noun. In headlines or rhetoric, pienet may be used for concise emphasis, sometimes to imply gentler or more intimate connotations of smallness.

Cultural and linguistic notes: Pienet does not denote a separate class or group in standard reference works; it is a normal adjectival plural form that gains substantive nuance through context. The corresponding singular forms are pieni (indefinite) and pienet (plural), with genitive forms such as pienten used when describing possession or part of larger phrases.

See also: pieni, pienet elintarvikkeet, pienet eläimet, Finnish grammar.