Breakdown of Voimme uusiokäyttää paperin, jolloin se muuttuu uusiksi kuiduiksi.
se
it / he / she (of a person) / that
uusi
new
voida
can, to be able to
muuttua
to change
paperi
paper
jolloin
when / at which time (relative)
kuitu
fiber
uusiokäyttää
to upcycle
Questions & Answers about Voimme uusiokäyttää paperin, jolloin se muuttuu uusiksi kuiduiksi.
Why are uusiksi and kuiduiksi in the translative case?
The verb muuttua (to change or turn into) requires the result of the change to be in the translative case. Because the paper turns into multiple "fibers", both the adjective and the noun take the translative plural ending -iksi.
Why does the t in kuitu (fiber) change to a d in kuiduiksi?
Adding the translative ending -ksi to the plural stem kuitui- creates the syllables kui-tuik-si. Because the middle syllable tuik ends in the consonant k, it is a closed syllable. This triggers the weak consonant grade, softening the t to a d to become kuiduiksi.
The singular translative of uusi is uudeksi. Why doesn't uusiksi have a d?
In the singular, the stem of uusi changes to uute-, which weakens to uude- to form the singular translative uudeksi. However, in the plural, the stem is simply uusi-. Since there is no t in the plural stem to weaken, you just add -ksi directly to get uusiksi.
What is the prefix uusio- in the verb uusiokäyttää?
It comes from the word uusi (new) and is used as a prefix for recycling or secondary use. While kierrättää is the general word for "to recycle", uusiokäyttää specifically means "to reuse" or "to upcycle" something into a new material or product.
Why is the object paperin in the genitive/accusative form rather than the partitive?
It is a total object. Using paperin implies we are completely upcycling a specific, defined batch or piece of paper from start to finish. If we were speaking generally about upcycling paper as an ongoing or undefined process, we would use the partitive paperia.
Why use the relative adverb jolloin here instead of just kun (when)?
The word jolloin (in which case / whereby) is a relative adverb that links back to the entire preceding action. While kun merely sets a general time frame, jolloin explicitly shows that the paper turning into fibers is a direct circumstance or consequence of the upcycling.
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