vaaleina

Vaaleina is the plural essive form of the Finnish adjective vaalea, meaning light-colored or pale. In Finnish grammar the essive case marks a temporary state or role, and is often translated into English with words like “as” or “in the capacity of.” The plural form vaaleina is used when the subject is plural.

Morphology and formation: The stem vaalea- combines with the essive suffix -na (singular: vaaleana) or -ina (plural: vaaleina). Thus vaaleina describes, for example, a collective or multiple subjects in a light-colored state.

Usage: Vaaleina is used to describe how several people or things appear or are perceived in a given moment. It can refer to color but also to a broader sense of being light in appearance. For example, in a scene described in Finnish, one might say that the people in a photo “ovat vaaleina” (are pale/light-colored) or that their hair “on vaaleina” (is pale/light-colored) depending on agreement with the subject.

Examples:

- Kuvassa ihmiset ovat vaaleina. (In the picture, the people are pale.)

- Hänen hiuksensa ovat vaaleina. (His/her hair is light-colored.)

Notes and related forms: The essive is a distinct grammatical case in Finnish and appears with adjectives and some nouns to express temporary states or roles. Related forms include singular vaaleana (as a pale one) and other adj-essive forms such as punainen becoming punaisena, illustrating the general pattern of -na/-nä in singular and -ina/-inä in plural.

See also: Finnish grammar, Essive case, Adjective declension, Vaalea (the base adjective).