Working As (-na)

Level 3

The essive case (ending in -na/-nä) is used with verbs like 'toimia' (to act as) or 'työskennellä' (to work as) to indicate a role or function. It translates to 'as' in English.

How It Works

In Finnish, when you want to say you are doing something in a specific capacity or role, you use the essive case. This is technically called a predicative adverbial.

1. Key Verbs:
Common verbs used with an essive role or state complement include (the verb can have other constructions in other meanings):

  • toimia (to act as / to function as)
  • työskennellä (to work as)
  • käyttää (to use [something] as)
  • olla (to be [in a role/state] - compare a role in a situation, Olen täällä opettajana, with the identifying predicate Olen opettaja. Essive does not require the career to be short-lived)
  • pysyä (to remain [as something])
  • pitää (to consider/regard [as something] - this requires the formula: pitää + [Partitive Object] + [Essive], e.g., Pidän häntä fiksuna. Note that when pitää means 'to like', it requires the elative case instead)
  • esiintyä (to perform as / to appear as / to pose as)

2. Formation:
The ending is -na or -nä. Vowel harmony dictates the choice: use -na with back vowels (a, o, u), and -nä with front vowels (ä, ö, y) or only neutral e/i; compounds normally follow their final component. For the vast majority of words, it is attached to the vowel stem. Because the essive ending starts with a single consonant and is followed by a vowel, it does not close the syllable. Therefore, if consonant gradation applies, the stem will be in the strong grade. However, there are a few common exceptions like vuonna (from vuosi) and huomenna that use the consonant stem.

  • kokki (chef) → kokkina (new words and loanwords ending in -i retain the -i)
  • opettaja (teacher) → opettajana
  • lapsi (child) → lapsena (note that for old Finnish words ending in -i, the -i changes to an -e- before adding the essive ending)

To form the plural essive, add the plural marker -i- before the essive ending (e.g., opettajina, lapsina).

3. Time Expressions:
Beyond roles, the essive is the standard case for days of the week (e.g., maanantaina) and specific time periods like tänä vuonna (this year) or lapsena (as a child/when I was a child). While general seasons typically use the adessive case (e.g., kesällä, in the summer), specified seasons require the essive case (e.g., tänä kesänä, this summer; ensi talvena, next winter).

4. Essive vs. Translative:
It is important to distinguish this from the translative case (-ksi). Use the essive for a static role (working as a teacher) and the translative for a change (becoming a teacher). English speakers should be especially careful with verbs like valmistua (to graduate) and valita (to choose/elect). While in English you might say 'graduate as' or 'elect as', Finnish requires the translative case for these verbs, not the essive.

5. Idiomatic Expressions:
The essive is also used in certain fixed expressions, most notably sinuna (if I were you), as in Sinuna menisin lääkäriin (If I were you, I would go to the doctor).

Age, life, and forms to recognize: Opin lukemaan viisivuotiaana (I learned to read at five); Hän kuoli nuorena (he/she died young); Hän eli erakkona (he/she lived as a hermit). Demonstrative essives include tämä → tänä, se → sinä, tuo → tuona, as in sinä päivänä (on that day). This sinä is distinct from the pronoun meaning you. Plural i can change the base vowel: kissa → kissoina.

Examples (4)

  1. Hän työskentelee sairaalassa lääkärinä.

    He works in the hospital as a doctor.

    Word by Word: He works hospital-in doctor-as.

    The essive 'lääkärinä' shows the professional role he holds while working.

  2. Minä toimin tässä kokouksessa sihteerinä.

    I am acting as the secretary in this meeting.

    Word by Word: I act this-in meeting-in secretary-as.

    Toimia takes the essive here to identify the meeting role; other meanings of toimia do not require an essive complement.

  3. Käytän tätä vanhaa kantoa pöytänä.

    I am using this old stump as a table.

    Word by Word: I use this old stump table-as.

    The essive can describe the function of an object, not just a person's job.

  4. Olin viime kesänä töissä tarjoilijana.

    I was at work as a waiter last summer.

    Word by Word: I was last summer-in work-at waiter-as.

    Even with the verb 'olla', the essive is used to specify the capacity or role during that time.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the weak stem instead of the strong stem.

    Hän työskentelee kokina.
    Hän työskentelee kokkina.

    The essive case requires the strong grade of the stem. For example, the word 'kokki' (chef) retains its double 'k' because the -na ending does not close the syllable.

  • Using the translative (-ksi) for a current job.

    Työskentelen opettajaksi.
    Työskentelen opettajana.

    The -ksi ending implies you are becoming something. If you already have the job, use -na.

  • Using 'kuin' (like) to describe a professional role.

    Työskentelen kuin lääkäri.
    Työskentelen lääkärinä.

    Kuin lääkäri compares the manner of working with a doctor's; it does not itself establish or deny a qualification. Lääkärinä states the professional capacity, which is the intended meaning here.

How It Connects

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

Working As (-na)Level 3

Learn This First

To understand verbs governing the essive, you first need to know how to form the essive case itself (-na/-nä). You also need to be familiar with the verbs 'olla' (to be), 'työskennellä' (to work), and 'toimia' (to act/function) and how they are conjugated, as these are the specific verbs that trigger this case usage when describing a role or capacity.

Words in This Pattern

-na-nä