Breakdown of Söimme eväät ja ymmärsimme suunnitelman suurin piirtein.
ja
and
ymmärtää
to understand
syödä
to eat
suunnitelma
plan
suuri
large, great
eväs
snack
piirre
feature (trait, characteristic)
Questions & Answers about Söimme eväät ja ymmärsimme suunnitelman suurin piirtein.
How does the phrase suurin piirtein mean "roughly", and how does it use the instructive case?
Suurin piirtein literally translates to "with big features" or "in broad strokes". Both words are in the instructive plural case: suurin comes from suuri (big), and piirtein comes from piirre (feature or trait). Today, it is a very common fixed phrase meaning "roughly" or "approximately".
How is the instructive plural piirtein formed from its base word?
The base word is piirre, which is a word ending in -e. Like other -e words, it has "inverse" consonant gradation where the basic form is weak and the stem is strong: the weak rr becomes a strong rt. To form the instructive, we take the strong plural stem (piirtei-) and add the instructive ending -n.
Why does the first object (eväät) look like a basic plural, while the second object (suunnitelman) ends in -n?
Both are "total objects", meaning the action was fully completed (we ate all the snacks and understood all of the plan). Because eväät (packed lunch/snacks) is plural, its total object form is simply the basic nominative plural. Because suunnitelma (plan) is singular, its total object form takes the genitive -n ending.
Can I use the instructive case to make up my own descriptive phrases?
You generally shouldn't. In modern Finnish, the instructive case (the -in ending) is almost entirely restricted to fixed idioms and set phrases like suurin piirtein (roughly), kaksin käsin (with both hands), or paljain jaloin (barefoot). For everyday "with" or "using" meanings, you will normally use the adessive case (-lla/-llä).
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