sanoistaan

Sanoistaan is a Finnish grammatical construction used to attribute information to the subject’s own words. It literally means “from his/her words” and is used to introduce a quotation, paraphrase, or claim that comes from the person previously mentioned in the sentence. The form is common in written Finnish and in formal speech, where it helps signal attribution without restating the speaker’s name.

The construction is built from the noun sanoista, meaning “from words,” combined with a third-person possessive reference to indicate whose words are being cited. In practice, sanoistaan functions as a cohesive device that links the reported content to the speaker or subject, as in examples such as “Hänen sanoistaan voi päätellä, että tilanne on vakava,” translated as “From his words one can conclude that the situation is serious.” Sanoistaan is often preferred in contexts where the emphasis is on the content of the words rather than on the act of speaking itself.

Sanoistaan is distinct from direct quotation (for example, using a verb like sanoi or kertoi) and from phrases such as omien sanojensa mukaan, which explicitly foreground the speaker’s own words. While sanoistaan is widely used in newspapers, essays, and formal reporting, speakers may choose direct quotes or paraphrase in more casual settings. Variants and related expressions include sanojensa mukaan and omien sanojensa mukaan, which likewise attribute information to another’s speech but with slightly different emphasis on attribution versus perspective.

In sum, sanoistaan is a common Finnish attribution form that anchors reported content to the original words of a person, facilitating concise and neutral quotation or paraphrase in writing. See also Finnish grammar; direct quotation; paraphrase.