väikeselt

Väikeselt is a word-form in Estonian that functions as the elative singular form of the adjective väike, meaning “small.” The elative case in Estonian answers questions about origin or source, roughly corresponding to “from” or “out of” in English. Therefore väikeselt can be understood as “from small” or “out of small size” within a suitable syntactic frame.

In practical terms, väikeselt is uncommon in everyday language and is mainly encountered in descriptive, poetic, or linguistic contexts where precise inflection of adjectives is discussed or illustrated. It can appear in grammar discussions as an example of how adjectives may take elative endings, and in dictionaries or grammars that document Estonian inflection patterns.

The form is part of the broader Estonian inflection system, which includes various cases that modify words to express relations such as origin, direction, and possession. Väikeselt, as a theoretical or descriptive form, serves to show how the elative ending attaches to a stem like väike and how such forms are treated in grammar references.

See also: Estonian language, elative case, adjective inflection, grammar terminology.