When you want to describe a relative as "somewhat grumpy" or an event as "rather boring," Finnish uses a handy suffix instead of a separate modifier word.
Softening Adjectives (-hko / -hkö)
To moderate the degree of an adjective, add the suffix -hko or -hkö to the adjective's stem. This creates a nuance meaning "somewhat," "rather," or "a bit."
As always, vowel harmony dictates which version you use: add -hko to words containing back vowels (a, o, u), and -hkö to words with front vowels (ä, ö, y).
For simple adjectives ending in a vowel, you can attach the suffix directly to the end of the basic form.
| My godfather is a somewhat grumpy man. | Minun kummisetäni on äreähkö mies. |
| That somewhat dark-haired second cousin visits the family gathering. | Tuo tummahko pikkuserkku käy sukukokouksessa. |
| We attend the family gathering, even though it is somewhat boring. | Me käymme sukukokouksessa, vaikka se on tylsähkö. |
Adjectives Ending in -nen
Many common Finnish adjectives end in -nen, such as etäinen (distant) and lapsellinen (childish). Before adding suffixes to these words, the -nen ending changes to -se-.
For example, etäinen becomes etäise-, which gives us etäisehkö (rather distant).
| He is a rather distant second cousin, so I do not know him. | Hän on etäisehkö pikkuserkku, joten en tunne häntä. |
| The youngest brother is always rather peculiar. | Nuorin veli on aina omituisehko. |
Matching Cases
These softened adjectives behave exactly like regular adjectives. They must still agree with the noun they describe, meaning they take the same case endings.
When a noun changes case, simply add the matching case ending to the end of the -hko / -hkö suffix.
| I do not remember that rather peculiar and somewhat distant relative. | Minä en muista tuota omituisehkoa ja etäisehköä sukulaista. |
| I do not attend that rather boring family gathering. | Minä en käy tuossa tylsähkössä sukukokouksessa. |
