Partitive plural: Difference between revisions
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Jmmbarberi (talk | contribs) Explained the correct use of partitive case in Finnish. |
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{{Unreferenced stub|auto=yes|date=December 2009}} |
{{Unreferenced stub|auto=yes|date=December 2009}} |
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'''Partitive plural''' is a [[grammatical number]] that is used to modify a noun which represents a part of some whole amount, as opposed to the [[comprehensive plural]], used when the noun represents the total amount of something. |
'''Partitive plural''' is a [[grammatical number]] that is used to modify a noun which represents a part of some whole amount, as opposed to the [[comprehensive plural]], used when the noun represents the total amount of something. It is one of four grammatical numbers in Quenya, the others being [[singular (grammatical number)|singular]], [[dual (grammatical number)|dual]], and [[plural]]. |
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A simmilar meaning can be expressed by the [[Partitive case|partitive]] [[Grammatical case|case]] in [[Finnish language]] (which influenced [[J.R.R. Tolkien]] in inventing his [[constructed language|fictional language]] [[Quenya]]). One of its uses in Finnish is to express a part of a larger object, or a subset of a group of several objects. |
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As for the Finnish [[partitive case|partitive]] plural, it is really a regular [[grammatical case|case]] form in the plural [[grammatical number|number]], but which is used in the singular as well, denoting an abstract, unknown identity or result. The best example of this would be the Finnish word for snow, "lumi". The partitive plural is "lumia", expressing the concept of more than a snowflake (lumihiutale) but not all snow everywhere (lumi). |
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An example in finnish would be the difference between the use of partitive and accusative: |
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{| class="wikitable" |
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|+Finnish examples |
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!Phrase |
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!Case |
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!Translation |
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!Literal meaning |
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|Minä syön omenaa. |
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|Part. sing. |
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|I am eating an apple. |
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|I am eating a part of an apple. |
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|- |
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|Minä syön omenan. |
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|Acc. sing. |
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|I eat an apple. |
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|I eat a whole apple. |
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|- |
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|Minä soin omenia. |
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|Part. pl. |
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|I was eating apples. |
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|I was eating some apples. |
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|- |
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|Minä soin omenat. |
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|Acc. pl. |
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|I ate apples. |
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|I ate the whole set of apples. |
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|} |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
Revision as of 16:37, 23 December 2019
Partitive plural is a grammatical number that is used to modify a noun which represents a part of some whole amount, as opposed to the comprehensive plural, used when the noun represents the total amount of something. It is one of four grammatical numbers in Quenya, the others being singular, dual, and plural.
A simmilar meaning can be expressed by the partitive case in Finnish language (which influenced J.R.R. Tolkien in inventing his fictional language Quenya). One of its uses in Finnish is to express a part of a larger object, or a subset of a group of several objects.
An example in finnish would be the difference between the use of partitive and accusative:
Phrase | Case | Translation | Literal meaning |
---|---|---|---|
Minä syön omenaa. | Part. sing. | I am eating an apple. | I am eating a part of an apple. |
Minä syön omenan. | Acc. sing. | I eat an apple. | I eat a whole apple. |
Minä soin omenia. | Part. pl. | I was eating apples. | I was eating some apples. |
Minä soin omenat. | Acc. pl. | I ate apples. | I ate the whole set of apples. |
See also