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Translative case

In grammar, the translative case (abbreviated TRANSL) is a grammatical case that indicates a change in state of a noun, with the general sense of "becoming X" or "change to X".

In Finnish, it is the counterpart of the essive case, with the basic meaning of a change of state. It is also used for expressing "in (a language)", "considering it is a (status)" and "by (a time)". Its ending is -ksi:

Examples in Estonian, where the ending is -ks:

In Estonian, translative can also express a temporary or random state. E.g. while a nominative construction would indicate working in a job or profession, as olen koolis õpetaja "I'm a teacher in a school", a similar sentence using translative olen koolis õpetajaks "I work as a teacher in a school" hints at it either being a temporary position, the speaker not being fully qualified, or some other factor of impermanency.[1]

In Hungarian, the ending is -vá / -vé after a vowel; it assimilates to the final consonant otherwise:

Further reading

References

  1. ^ Saav kääne (Translative case), Eesti keele käsiraamat (The Handbook of Estonian Language), Eesti Keele Instituut, 2007