Finnish

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Finnish numbers (edit)
10
 ←  0 1 2  →  10  → 
    Cardinal: yksi
    Colloquial counting form: yy
    Ordinal: ensimmäinen
    Colloquial ordinal: eka, ensin
    Ordinal abbreviation: 1., 1:nen
    Digit name: ykkönen
    Adverbial: kerran, (mathematics) yhdesti
    Multiplier: yksinkertainen
    Distributive: yksittäin

Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Proto-Finnic *encimeinen. Derived from the superlative of ensi (with the superlative ending -in: *ensin, genitive *ensim(m)än) with +‎ -inen. The geminated -mm- is due to the word falling in line with other superlative words in Finnish (see -in) which have been influenced by the comparative suffix -mpi. Compare Estonian esimene, Ingrian ensimäin, Karelian ensimäine, Livonian eʼžmi, Ludian eńžimaińe, Veps ezmäne, Votic esimein.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈensimːæi̯nen/, [ˈe̞ns̠imˌmæi̯ne̞n]
  • Rhymes: -æinen
  • Hyphenation(key): en‧sim‧mäi‧nen

Adjective

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ensimmäinen

  1. first
    Synonyms: ensi, eka (colloquial), enstemmäinen (colloquial), päällimmäinen
  2. former (as opposed to latter)
    Antonym: jälkimmäinen

Declension

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Possessive forms of ensimmäinen (Kotus type 38/nainen, no gradation)
Rare. Only used with substantive adjectives.

Derived terms

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compounds

References

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  • Häkkinen, Kaisa (2004) Nykysuomen etymologinen sanakirja [Modern Finnish Etymological Dictionary] (in Finnish), Juva: WSOY, →ISBN

Further reading

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