Verbs of warning and reminding (-sta/-stä)

Warnings and the Elative Case

In Finnish, when you warn someone about something, the source of the danger takes the elative case (-sta / -stä). Conceptually, the warning arises "out of" the hazard.

The verb varoittaa (to warn) strongly governs this case.

We are warning you about this chemical.
Varoitamme teitä tästä kemikaalista.

If a sign or a person lists multiple hazards, every noun in that list must be in the elative case.

The sign warns about a hazard, exposure, and an accident.
Kyltti varoittaa vaaratekijästä, altistumisesta ja tapaturmasta.

Pointing Out and Reminding

This same directional logic applies to other verbs of communication where you draw attention to a specific issue. Both huomauttaa (to point out) and muistuttaa (to remind) require the elative case for the topic being discussed.

The manager pointed out the new hazard to me.
Esimies huomautti minulle uudesta vaaratekijästä.
Did you remind the staff about the precautions?
Muistutitteko henkilökuntaa varotoimista?

Describing Workplace Hazards

When describing a specific incident, such as a leak or an accident, the main noun expressing the event takes the elative case.

The boss warned us about the flammable liquid leak.
Pomo varoitti meitä syttyvän nesteen vuodosta.