The Allative Case: "To Someone"
In Finnish, when you give, send, or tell something to a person, you use the allative case. You form this by adding the suffix -lle to the end of the noun.
When you want to ask "to whom?", you use the question word kenelle.
| to whom | kenelle |
| Who do you send the package to? | Kenelle sinä lähetät paketin? |
| I tell the answer to the teacher. | Minä kerron vastauksen opettajalle. |
| He sends a letter to a friend. | Hän lähettää kirjeen ystävälle. |
Communication Verbs
Many communication verbs, like soittaa (to call) and näyttää (to show), also require the receiver to take the -lle ending.
| Who is mother calling now? | Kenelle äiti soittaa nyt? |
| I will call the customer tomorrow. | Minä soitan huomenna asiakkaalle. |
| The teacher shows the picture to the student. | Opettaja näyttää kuvan opiskelijalle. |
Moving "Onto" a Surface
The -lle ending is also used to describe movement onto a surface. If you put a book on a shelf, or if a cat jumps onto a shelf (hylly), the shelf takes the -lle suffix.
| The cat jumps onto the shelf. | Kissa hyppää hyllylle. |
| I leave the book on the shelf. | Minä jätän kirjan hyllylle. |
Remember that words ending in -nen, like lautanen (plate), change their stem to -se- before adding the suffix. So, lautanen becomes lautaselle (onto the plate).
| I leave the food on the plate. | Minä jätän ruoan lautaselle. |
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