The Partitive Plural (-ja / -jä)
You already know that the partitive plural is used for indefinite amounts, negative sentences, and after quantity words. In this lesson, we will look at the -ja and -jä endings.
If a word ends in -a (like kirja), the -a often changes to -o- before adding the -ja ending. Remember that adjectives must agree with the noun they describe!
| I have read thick books. | Olen lukenut paksuja kirjoja. |
For words ending in -o, -ö, -u, or -y, the rule is even simpler: you just add -ja or -jä directly to the end of the word.
| I often read poems. | Minä luen usein runoja. |
You will also use these endings when expressing an amount with words like paljon (a lot).
| There are a lot of pages in this novel. | Tässä romaanissa on paljon sivuja. |
Vowel Changes with -i
If a word ends in -i (like teksti or romaani), the final -i changes to -e- before adding the -jä or -ja ending.
| He writes texts and stories. | Hän kirjoittaa tekstejä ja juttuja. |
| I recommend new novels. | Suosittelen uusia romaaneja. |
Mixing Endings
Because adjectives and nouns have different stems, they will often take different partitive plural endings. For example, an adjective might take the -ia / -iä ending you learned previously, while the noun it describes takes -ja / -jä. They are both correctly in the partitive plural, even if they look slightly different!
| Do you recommend good notebooks? | Suositteletko hyviä vihkoja? |
Finally, just like in the singular, the partitive plural is required as the object of a negative sentence.
| I do not understand the chapters. | En ymmärrä lukuja. |
