noting a case, as in Finnish, whose distinctive function is to indicate a state of being
noun
2.
the essive case
Word origin
[1900–05; ‹ Finnish essivi ‹ L ess(e) to be + -īvus-ive]This word is first recorded in the period 1900–05. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: Young Turk, desensitize, elder statesman, hormone, throwaway-ive is a suffix of adjectives (and nouns of adjectival origin) expressing tendency, disposition,function, connection, etc. Other words that use the affix -ive include: active, corrective, detective, passive, sportive