pääteella

Pääteella is a Finnish linguistic term used to describe the suffix -ella in Finnish grammar, specifically the adessive suffix that attaches to noun stems to indicate location or means. The adessive marks a position such as “on” or “at” a surface, or it can denote means or instrument in a clause. In Finnish, many relational functions are expressed with suffixes rather than prepositions, and pääteella is part of this system of suffixal forms.

The adessive appears in two common allomorphs, -lla and -llä. The chosen form follows standard vowel harmony and phonological rules of Finnish. For example, laivalla means on the ship, demonstrating the -lla form; kynällä means with a pen, illustrating the -llä form. Other examples include pöydällä (on the table) and talolla (at the house). The variation between -lla and -llä reflects how the suffix adapts to the preceding stem’s phonology.

In linguistic description, pääteella is used to illustrate how Finnish expresses spatial and instrumental relations through suffixes rather than separate prepositional phrases. It is a label for this specific suffixal pattern and is discussed within broader topics such as Finnish morphology, cases, and word formation.

See also: Finnish grammar, adessive case, Finnish suffixes, morphology.