pöydille

Pöydille is a Finnish grammatical form that functions as the illative plural of the noun pöytä, meaning table. It expresses movement toward or arrival at seating areas consisting of multiple tables, such as a restaurant’s dining section or event venue. In use, pöydille designates “to the tables” in a plural sense rather than to a single table.

Morphology and meaning: The base word pöytä refers to a table. The plural nominative is pöydät, the genitive plural pöytien, and the illative plural is pöydille. The illative case in Finnish marks direction toward a place, so pöydille specifically conveys motion toward the seating area with several tables.

Usage and examples: Common contexts include restaurants, events, and social gatherings where attendees are directed to seating. Examples include: Me menimme pöydille istumaan. (We went to the tables to sit.) Saatte siirtyä pöydille. (You may move to the tables.) Koko ryhmä suuntasi pöydille. (The whole group headed to the tables.) The phrase emphasizes entering or approaching the seating area rather than remaining at a different location.

Related forms: The singular illative is pöydälle (to the table), and other cases include pöydällä (on the table, adessive singular) and pöydillä (on the tables, adessive plural). The broader word family includes pöytä, pöydät, pöydien, and related contractions depending on context.

See also: Finnish case system, illative case, and general noun declension. Pöydille is primarily used in contexts involving seating arrangements and movement toward dining or meeting areas.