science

Terminative case

Terminative case is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Terminative case rather than just read about it. In short: In grammar, the terminative or terminalis case (abbreviated term) is a case specifying a limit in space and time and also to convey the goal or target of an action. Assamese In the Assamese language, the terminative case is indicated by the suffix -(অ)লৈকে -(o)loike: Bashkir In the Bashkir language, the terminative case is indicated by the suffix -ğasa/-gäsä/-qasa/-käsä: However, postpositions тиклем (tiklem), хәтле…

Key takeaways

Terminative case belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Terminative case to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Terminative case from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

In grammar, the terminative or terminalis case (abbreviated term) is a case specifying a limit in space and time and also to convey the goal or target of an action.

Assamese In the Assamese language, the terminative case is indicated by the suffix -(অ)লৈকে -(o)loike:

Bashkir In the Bashkir language, the terminative case is indicated by the suffix -ğasa/-gäsä/-qasa/-käsä:

However, postpositions тиклем (tiklem), хәтлем (xätlem), ҡәҙәр (qäðär) 'till, up to' are more frequently used in Bashkir to convey this meaning.

Classical Hebrew T.J. Meek has argued that "the so-called locative hē" in Classical Hebrew "is terminative only and should be renamed terminative hē."

Estonian In the Estonian language, the terminative case is indicated by the '-ni' suffix:

jõeni: 'to the river'/'as far as the river' kella kuueni: 'until six o'clock'

Hungarian The Hungarian language uses the '-ig' suffix.

a házig: 'as far as the house' hat óráig/hatig: 'until six o'clock' If used for time, it can also show how long the action lasted.

hat óráig: 'for six hours'/'six hours long' száz évig: 'for a hundred years' It is not always clear whether the thing in terminative case belongs to the interval in question or not.

A koncertig maradtam.: 'I stayed until the concert (ended or started?)' Here it is more likely that the person only stayed there until the concert began. Mondj egy számot 1-től 10-ig!: 'Say a number from 1 to (until) 10.' However here 10 can be said as well. The corresponding question word is meddig?, which is simply the question word mi? ('what?') in terminative case.

Sumerian In Sumerian, the terminative case -še not only was used to indicate end-points in space or time but also end-points of an action itself such as its target or goal. In this latter role, it functioned much like an accusative case.

Finnish The use of the postposition asti (or synonymously saakka) with the illative (or allative or sublative) case in Finnish very closely corresponds to the terminative. These same postpositions with the elative (or ablative) case also express the opposite of a terminative: a limit in time or space of origination or initiation. The old Finnish terminative -ni is no longer productive, but it appears in the Kalevala: nominative se "it, that" ~ terminative sini "up to where" = modern siihen asti, and nominative kuka "who, what (poetic)" ~ terminative kuni "up to where" = modern kuhun asti. Also, the established phrase kaikki tyynni "every, until completion" contains the terminative tyynni, being derived from an older form kaikki tyvennik "every, up to its base", where tyvi is "foot, base".

Japanese The Japanese particle まで (made) acts like a terminative case.

See also Cessative aspect Desiderative mood List of grammatical cases

References

Further reading Anhava, Jaakko (2015). "Criteria For Case Forms in Finnish and Hungarian Grammars". journal.fi. Helsinki: Finnish Scholarly Journals Online.

External links The dictionary definition of terminative at Wiktionary

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Terminative case

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Terminative case claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Terminative case before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Terminative case ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Terminative case

In research: Terminative case appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Terminative case in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Terminative case is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Grammatical cases, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Terminative case outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Terminative case in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Terminative case means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Terminative case out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Terminative case in simple terms?

In grammar, the terminative or terminalis case (abbreviated term) is a case specifying a limit in space and time and also to convey the goal or target of an action. Assamese In the Assamese language, the terminative case is indicated by the suffix -(অ)লৈকে -(o)loike: Bashkir In the Bashkir language…

Why does Terminative case matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Terminative case?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Terminative case.