mennessä
By a Deadline (Mennessä)
Use mennessä to set a deadline (e.g., 'by Monday'). It always follows a noun in the illative case.
How It Works
The word mennessä is technically the second infinitive inessive form of the verb mennä (to go). However, in this context, it functions as a temporal postposition.
1. The Illative Requirement
You must put the deadline word into the illative case before adding mennessä. For example:
- Maanantai (Monday) → Maanantaihin mennessä (By Monday)
- Kello viisi (Five o'clock) → Kello viiteen mennessä (By five o'clock)
2. Meaning and Nuance
It is synonymous with the adverb viimeistään (at the latest). While some older sources suggest it means 'before,' modern usage (confirmed by the Institute for the Languages of Finland) treats the deadline as inclusive. If a task is due by Friday, submitting it on Friday is acceptable.
3. Temporal vs. Spatial
This pattern is strictly for time. You cannot use it to mean 'by the river' or 'passing by the house.' For spatial 'by,' you would use other expressions like varrella or ohi.
4. Distinguishing from 'Until'
Be careful not to confuse this with asti or saakka (until). Viiteen asti means you work until 5:00; viiteen mennessä means you must finish the work no later than 5:00.
Examples (4)
- Palauta hakemus ensi maanantaihin mennessä.
Return the application by next Monday.
Word by Word: Return application next Monday-into by.
Maanantaihin is the illative form of maanantai. The deadline includes Monday.
- Projekti valmistuu vuoden loppuun mennessä.
The project will be completed by the end of the year.
Word by Word: Project completes year's end-into by.
Loppuun is the illative of loppu (end).
- Tähän mennessä kaikki on sujunut hyvin.
So far, everything has gone well.
Word by Word: This-into by all has flowed well.
Tähän mennessä is a common fixed expression meaning 'so far' or 'up to this point'.
- Ole kotona kello kuuteen mennessä.
Be home by six o'clock.
Word by Word: Be at-home clock six-into by.
Kuuteen is the illative of kuusi (six).
Common Mistakes
Using the genitive case instead of the illative.
perjantain mennessäperjantaihin mennessäMost Finnish postpositions require the genitive (-n), but mennessä is a rare exception that requires the illative case.
Confusing 'by' (deadline) with 'until' (duration).
Työskentelen kello viiteen mennessä.Työskentelen kello viiteen asti.Mennessä implies a deadline for completion. If you are describing an ongoing action that stops at a certain time, use 'asti' or 'saakka'.
How It Connects
Learn This First
To use 'mennessä' correctly, you must first be comfortable forming the illative case, as this postposition always follows a word in the illative. It is also helpful to know how to express days and times, as these are the most common contexts for setting a deadline.
- -Vn/-seenIllative (-Vn/-seen)
The pattern 'mennessä' is used specifically with nouns in the illative case to indicate a deadline.
Level 1 - -na (viikonpäivät)Days with -na
Deadlines are frequently expressed using days of the week, which requires understanding how time-related nouns are formed.
Level 1 - kello onTelling the Time
Deadlines often involve specific clock times, which are used in the illative form before 'mennessä'.
Level 1
Related Patterns
- asti / saakkaUntil a Point (Asti, Saakka)
These express 'until,' which is the duration leading up to a point, whereas mennessä expresses the deadline itself.
Level 4 - -essa (temporaalirakenne)Temporal Construction (-essa)
Mennessä is morphologically the same as the 'while doing' construction of the verb mennä (to go).
Level 4
Words in This Pattern
Practice mennessä in Bubblegum
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