Breakdown of Tuo iäkäs kirjailija on mainekas.
olla
to be
tuo
that
kirjailija
author / writer
iäkäs
elderly
mainekas
renowned
Questions & Answers about Tuo iäkäs kirjailija on mainekas.
What is the root word of iäkäs, and why does the spelling change?
It comes from the noun ikä (age). When adding the -käs suffix, the root undergoes consonant gradation where the k drops out, leaving the stem iä-. Because the suffix implies abundance, someone with "a lot of age" is elderly.
Why does mainekas use the -kas suffix while iäkäs uses -käs?
This follows standard vowel harmony rules. The root word maine contains the back vowel 'a', so it requires the back-vowel suffix -kas. The root word ikä only contains front and neutral vowels (ä, i), so it takes the front-vowel suffix -käs.
How do words ending in -kas or -käs behave when you add case endings, for example in the elative case?
How does mainekas differ in nuance from the more common word kuuluisa (famous)?
Because mainekas is derived from the noun maine (reputation), it specifically means someone with a highly distinguished or positive reputation. Kuuluisa simply means famous or well-known, which could be for either good or bad reasons.
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