substantiivimuodoilla
Substantiivimuodoilla refers to the inflected forms of Finnish nouns, used to express grammatical relationships such as number, case, and role in a sentence. Finnish nouns are highly inflected, and the base form (nominatiivi) changes through suffixes to indicate how the noun functions grammatically, for example as a subject, object, or in relation to location or direction. In addition to singular and plural, noun forms convey various meanings through a system of cases that cover subjects, possessions, quantities, and spatial relations.
Common functions of substantiivimuotojen (noun forms) include:
- Nominatiivi: base form, typically marking the subject or a predicate noun.
- Genetiivi: possessive or close association, often translated as the “’s” or of-phrase.
- Partitiivi: partial object or indefinite quantity; also used after certain verbs and with negative clauses.
- Illatiivi, Inessiivi, Elatiivi, Adessiivi, Ablatiivi, Allatiivi: express location, movement, and direction relative to place, such as
- Essiivi: temporary state or role.
- Translatiivi: change of state or role, often translated as “become” or “as.”
Examples illustrate how endings change meaning:
- Nominatiivi: Kissa istuu. (The cat sits.)
- Genetiivi: Kissan lelu on uusi. (The cat’s toy is new.)
- Partitiivi: Haluan kissaa. (I want a cat.)
- Illatiivi: Kissa menee huoneeseen. (The cat goes into the room.)
- Adessiivi: Kissa makaa pöydällä. (The cat lies on the table.)
- Ablatiivi: Kissa lähtee pöydältä. (The cat leaves from the table.)
- Translatiivi: Kissa muuttuu kissaksi. (The cat becomes a cat.)
Substantiivimuotojen hallinta on keskeinen osa suomen kielioppi, koska suffix-rakenteiset taivutukset ilmaisevat monia suhteita ilman erillisiä prepositioita.