Elative

The elative suffix stA

The elative is always formed with the suffix sta or stä, but the stem often changes, in ways described elsewhere in this book. In plural, the elative suffix is preceded by the plural suffix i. Example: kukka : kuka|sta : kuk|i|sta (flower : from flower : from flowers).

Meanings of elative

The elative often corresponds to the English proposition “from” and usually refers to being moved away from something, in a concrete or abstract sense. Examples: talosta (from a/the house), tammikuusta alkaen (from January onwards), selvitä vaikeuksista (to pull through a trouble; literally: get clear from difficulties).

The elative is also used in contexts where it means leaving a state of being in close contact with or attached to something, as in ottaa käsineet kädestä (to take gloves off; literally: to take gloves from hand). Section Locational cases covers such uses of the inessive.

In addition, the elative is used in the following meanings:

• To mean “through…” in some contexts, e.g. Hän tuli takaovesta (He came through the backdoor).
• To specify the subject of a change, e.g. Hänestä tuli poliitikko (He became a politician; literally: from him came politician).
• To refer to origin or material, e.g. Maja on rakennettu puusta (The cottage is made of wood.
• To indicate the source of information in expressions like Tiedän sen kokemuksesta (I know it from experience).
• To indicate the reason for gratitude, e.g. Kiitos neuvosta (Thanks for the advice).
• To express theme or topic, as in Puhuimme asiasta (We talked about the matter, We discussed the matter). In such usage, it often corresponds to the English preposition “about” or “on”.
• To mention a cause, as in Hän teki sen pelkästä ilkeydestä (He did it out of mere malice). The partitive, e.g. pelkkää ilkeyttään, has the same meaning in such usage.
• To indicate a group or entity that something is a member or a part of, often cor­re­spond­ing to the English preposition “of”. Examples: viisi meistä (five of us), osa maasta (part of a/the country).
• To refer to the source of a statement, opinion etc. , as in minusta “in my opinion” or the longer minun mielestäni (literally: from my mind).
• With some verbs that mean e.g. being fond of or liking something or someone. We say Pidän sinusta (I like you), or, using a colloquial verb and colloquial forms, Mä tykkään susta. The background is probably that the verb pitää means concretely “to keep hold of”, so Pidän sinusta originally meant “I’m keeping hold of you”. Another example is Olen kiinnostunut sinusta (I am interested in you).