Aikaa ajaksi aikana ajassa: these are all forms of the word aika, which can all be used in expressions of time (ajanilmaukset). But when do you use which? Pitkän ajan? Pitkän aikaa? Pitkäksi aikaa? Pitkäksi ajaksi? Pitkästä aikaa? Hopefully this article helps you in the right direction!

1. Inflection of the Word Aika

Below you can find the forms aikaa, ajaksi, aikana and ajassa organized by the case they are inflected in! Notice that for many of these forms you need to remember consonant gradation rules.

2. Sentences Types Organized by Grammatical Case

2.1. Genitive Aika Phrases – Ajan

The easiest type of phrase where aika appears in the genitive case is with a postposition such as kuluttua, jälkeen or sisällä (#1). The preposition koko also always requires the genitive case (#2). Certain verbs have ajan as their object, such as kestää and viedä (#3).

Certain phrases with ajan (#4) can be tricky. These phrases don’t have a postposition nor a verb that requires the genitive. They express the length of an activity. Instead of expressing the duration with lyhyt or pitkä, we can also specify the length as e.g. two weeks (#5).

Problems can arise here when we compare the use of the genitive to the translative and essive cases. For example, all three of the following sentences are possible:

• Opiskelin kahden vuoden ajan.
  “I studied for the duration of two years.”
  This sentence gives us information about how long my studies lasted.
• Opiskelin kahden vuoden aikana.
  “I studied during the time frame of two years.”
  This sentence gives us information of the general time span, but not of how much time we actually spent studying during it.
• Päätin opiskella kahden vuoden ajaksi.
  “I decided to study for two years.”
  This sentence gives us the intended length I will be studying.

Look at section 3.3 for another example of the difference between the use of the genitive, translative and essive.

2.2. Plural Genitive Aika Phrases

Of the following sentences, the ones marked with #1 have a postposition in them, while #2 has one of those prepositions that also require the genitive case. The singular genitive does not work in any of these: they are fossilized phrases which use the plural genitive.

2.3. Translative and Partitive Aika Phrases

We can use the translative case when we want to express for how long something lasts: e.g. for a short time or a long time. Generally, you can think of the translative as the case that expresses the intended (or expected) duration of an event.

For some of the phrases below, we can have both words inflect in the translative case (#1), but sometimes there’s an equally common alternative which combines the translative with the partitive case (#2). There is no difference in meaning between the two.

2.4. Translative and Genitive Aika Phrases

Just like in 2.3., the translative is used in the example below in combination with the genitive to express the intended or expected duration of an event. When something lasts a certain number of days, months or years, this number will be inflected in the genitive case. For example, yhdentoista kuukauden ajaksi or viiden vuoden ajaksi (#1).

When using dates (#2), you get into quite the pickle because there’s just too much going on in the sentence. The phrase “5.-20.5. väliseksi ajaksi” will make most sense if you read it as “toukokuun viidennen ja kahdennenkymmenennen väliseksi ajaksi”. However, this is a phrase that you will find in written Finnish, where none of it has to be said out loud.

Note: We will also have the translative in phrases like viideksi viikoksi, but we’re focusing on phrases with the word aika in it here. The phrase viiden viikon ajaksi means the same thing as viideksi viikoksi.

2.5. Essive Aika Phrases

Expressions with aikana (the essive case) will generally be translated as either “in” or “during” a time span. When specifying the time span, you will find the genitive case used in combination with the essive case, both when we’re talking about a time increment (day, week, month, see #1) or an event (vacation, process war, see #2).

You can also find aikana with a possessive suffix (#4). In these cases, doing direct translations doesn’t give us the whole picture. These phrases express that something happens during the appropriate time for the person or thing the possessive suffix is linked to.

2.6. Plural Essive Aika Phrases

Phrases with aikoina generally have a meaning that’s rather specilized, as you can see from the translations of the sentences below. However, we could translate aikoina as “times”, such as in the phrases “during recent times” (#1)  and “during different times” (#2).

We can add a genitive to these phrases, such as in the sentence “Verenpaine vaihtelee voimakkaasti [vuorokauden eri aikoina]“, where “during different times” has been specified further: The blood pressure fluctuates strongly [during different times of the day].

In addition, we have aikoina with a possessive suffix: aikoinaan (#3). This form has fossilized to some extent, so you won’t have the possessive suffix agree with the subject at all times. The fossilized meaning can be translated as “once, at one point of time”. The more literal version – which can also be found with different possessive suffixes – could be translated as “in his day” or “in my day”.

2.7. T-Plural Aika Phrases – Ajat

The T-plural form ajat appears in a small selection of phrases only.

2.8. Partitive Aika Phrases – Aikaa

Phrases with aika in the partitive often aren’t appreciated by learners of Finnish because the combination of the genitive and partitive in these phrases (#1) just doesn’t seem logical. This is most common when we have a phrase with sitten. The phrases hetken aikaa and kaiken aikaa are fossilized forms that are always used this way.

Also not the very common phrase pitkästä aikaa, which combines the mistä form with the partitive.

2.9. Plural Partitive Aika Phrases – Aikoja

The expressions below that contain ennen (#1), the plural partitive and a possessive suffix express that something happens earlier than it should.

The expression omia aikoja with a possessive suffix (#2) can – depending on the sentence – be interpreted in two ways. First, it often expresses that something happens by itself, naturally. Second, when referring to people doing things, it can express that they’re doing it leasurely, without hurrying.

2.10. Mihin Aika Phrases – Aikaan Aikoihin

In some of the sentences below (#1), you will find an interesting effect the plural mihin form has on the example sentences. In certain cases, we can use both the singular and the plural form in the same sentence. The plural will refer to a less exact time. For example, instead of samaan aikaan “at the same time”, we can use the plural samoihin aikoihin which makes the time less precise “around the same time”.

In sentences expressing how long something hasn’t happened (#2), we will always use the mihin form of the time span. This is true for all expressions of time: En ole nähnyt sinua kolmeen viikkoon / kahteen vuoteen / pitkään aikaan. In comparison with the singular, the plural pitkiin aikoihin just conveys that the time is especially long.

The postpositions saakka and asti are used to express until when something takes place (#3) when used in combination with the mihin form. When we want to express something happening around the time of an event (#4), we can combine the mihin form with the genitive. For example, if something happens around Christmas, you can say joulun aikaan.

2.11. Instructive Aika Phrases – Ajoin

While the following phrases contain the word aika in the instructive case, there is no need to study the instructive case just to learn these phrases (#1). They are, after all, phrases – meant to be studied as a whole.

The phrase toisin ajoin (#2) appears in longer phrases that express a contrast between two time periods. Take for example this sentence: [Toisin ajoin hän näytti upealta ja älykkäältä, toisin ajoin taas hän oli kalpea ja surkean näköinen.] Using toisin ajoin twice in this phrase accentuates the opposition: “At certain times she looked stunning and intelligent, while at other times she was pale and miserable looking.”

2.12. Inessive Aika Phrases – Ajassa Ajoissa

While ajassa and ajoissa both get translated as “on time”, the singular (#1) is used for time schedules and exact times. The plural (#2) is mainly used for people leaving in time for something.

2.13. Adessive Aika Phrases – Ajalla Ajallaan

The adessive form ajalla is used mainly with a possessive suffix in order to express that something happens at the right time (#1); or when the time is right (#2).

In addition, you will also use it with some historical time periods (#3) such as the Classical Age (between the 8th century BC and the 6th century AD) and the Modern Age (from about 1500 AD to present times). However, not all historical time periods will include ajalla. Many use aikana, such as ristiretkien aikana (during the Crusades) and antiikin Rooman aikoina (during ancient Roman times).

2.14. Ablative Aika Phrases – Ajalta

When we’re looking back on a time span and taking a total of something that happened during that period, the ablative ajalta comes into play in combination with the genitive case.

3. Comparison of Some Aika Phrases

3.1. Kahden viikon ajan vs. kahden viikon ajaksi

Both of these phrases get translated into English as “for two weeks” or “for the duration of two weeks”. However, in Finnish they do carry a little bit of a different connotation.

When you use the translative case in kahden viikon ajaksi, you’re generally focusing on the fact that there’s a deadline by which things will change. Often, you’re referring to an event that will span two weeks into the future.

Using the genitive case in kahden viikon ajan has a different focus. In this case, you’re focusing on how things are during these two weeks. The main focus is not on the deadling, but on the timespan.

For example, the sentence Kaupan ovet suljetaan/suljettiin kahden viikon ajaksi puts the stress on how this action is temporary and will come to an end in two weeks. In constract, Kaupan ovet suljetaan/suljettiin kahden viikon ajan is likely to refer to what is happening during these two weeks. Perhaps they’re renovating the store during that time. Both sentences will be translated to English as “The doors of the store will be closed (were closed) for (the duration of) two weeks”.

3.2. Pitkän aikaa vs. Pitkää aikaa vs. Pitkäksi aikaa

This trio of phrases can be very confusing.

1. Pitkästä aikaa is the most common phrase which combines two cases. It’s used to express that something has happened after a long period of it not happening.
2. Pitkän ajan and pitkän aikaa both express the time period something lasts for. While pitkän ajan probably sounds more “correct” to you, pitkän aikaa is more common. To avoid this issue, you could use kauan instead.
3. The negative equivalent of this phrase will have the partitive case.
4. When using a postposition, the time frame will be inflected in the genitive case.
5. Pitkäksi ajaksi and pitkäksi aikaa are synonyms. They both express how long the period is going to last, or at least how long the period is intended to last. You can use either of these, but pitkäksi aikaa is somewhat more common.
6. Negative sentences can be one of two types:
   1. Sentences that tell us how long the period of us doing something is going to last. For these, you can use both of the forms that also appear in the affirmative sentences.
   2. Sentences that express the time span of how long something hasn’t happened. For these sentences (which usually have a verb in the perfect tense), you will use the mihin form.

3.3. Kahden viikon ajan vs. Kahden viikon aikana

The phrase kahden viikon ajan is used to express a time span as a block of time. In contrast, kahden viikon aikana is used to look at a time span’s development. It’s a subtle difference that I can’t really explain very well. The phrase kahden viikon ajaksi is used to express the intended time span of something.

For example, Istuimme siellä lyhyen ajan means “we sat there a short while”. These phrases are close to a similar phrase with the translative case: Istuuduimme lyhyeksi ajaksi “we sat down for a short time”. The difference here is that the genitive tells us the length of the activity, while the translative tells us the intended length of the activity.

Another harder pair with a subtle difference are the genitive: Opiskelin kahden vuoden ajan “I studied two years” (#5), and the essive case: Opiskelin kahden vuoden aikana “I studied during two years”. The former of the two informs us of the length of an event, while the latter tells us of what events took place during the time span. They can of course mean the same thing in some contexts.

That’s all for this article! Hopefully the use of the forms aikaa, ajaksi, aikana and ajassa are a little clearer to you now! You should also check out my other article about vocabulary that included the word aika.

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