asti / saakka

Until a Point (Asti, Saakka)

Level 4

The postpositions asti and saakka mean 'until' or 'since' depending on the case of the noun they follow. They are almost always interchangeable and emphasize the extent of time or space.

How It Works

These two words are terminative postpositions, meaning they define a boundary.

1. Marking the Endpoint ('Until' / 'As far as')
When you want to say 'until' a time or 'all the way to' a place, use the Illative or Allative case.

  • aamuun asti = until morning
  • tänne saakka = all the way here

2. Marking the Starting Point ('Since' / 'All the way from')
When you want to say 'since' a time or 'all the way from' a place, use the Elative or Ablative case.

  • lapsuudesta asti = since childhood
  • kotoa saakka = all the way from home

3. Nuance and Usage
While they are 99% interchangeable, asti is used in specific scalar idioms like tarpeeksi asti (to a sufficient degree). In simple time expressions, they are often optional but add emphasis to the duration (e.g., maanantaihin vs maanantaihin asti). They do not trigger consonant gradation themselves; the noun simply stays in its inflected form.

Examples (5)

  1. Odotimme bussia yhteentoista asti.

    We waited for the bus until eleven.

    Word by Word: We-waited bus-partitive eleven-illative until.

    Here, 'yhteentoista' is in the illative case to show the endpoint of the waiting.

  2. Hän käveli asemalta saakka kotiin.

    He walked all the way from the station to home.

    Word by Word: He walked station-ablative all-the-way-from home-illative.

    Using the ablative case 'asemalta' with 'saakka' emphasizes the long distance starting from the station.

  3. Olen asunut täällä tammikuusta asti.

    I have lived here since January.

    Word by Word: I-am lived here January-elative since.

    The elative case 'tammikuusta' combined with 'asti' indicates the starting point in time.

  4. Luin kirjaa iltaan saakka.

    I read the book until evening.

    Word by Word: I-read book-partitive evening-illative until.

    The illative 'iltaan' marks the time boundary when the reading stopped.

  5. Vettä satoi aamusta asti.

    It rained since morning.

    Word by Word: Water-partitive rained morning-elative since.

    The elative 'aamusta' shows when the rain began.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the genitive case instead of a directional case.

    Odotan maanantain asti.
    Odotan maanantaihin asti.

    Most Finnish postpositions require the genitive, but 'asti' and 'saakka' require directional cases like the illative.

  • Confusing 'asti' (duration) with 'mennessä' (deadline).

    Palauta kirja huomiseen asti.
    Palauta kirja huomiseen mennessä.

    'Asti' means you do something continuously until a point. 'Mennessä' means the action must be completed by that time.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

asti / saakkaLevel 4Until a Point (Asti, Saakka)

Learn This First

To use 'asti' and 'saakka' correctly, you need to know how to form the illative and ablative cases, as these postpositions require the noun to be in one of those forms depending on whether you are marking a limit or a starting point. Familiarity with telling time is also helpful for practical usage.

Words in This Pattern

astisaakka