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Questions & Answers about Mikä on taskussa?
How do we form the word for 'in the pocket'?
We take the base word tasku (pocket) and add the ending -ssa to mean 'in'. This ending is called the inessive case.
Why does taskussa use -ssa instead of -ssä?
Because of vowel harmony. The word tasku has the back vowels a and u, so it must take the back vowel ending -ssa. If a word had front vowels like ä, ö, or y, it would take -ssä.
Why do we use mikä here instead of mitä?
Both words mean 'what'. We use mikä when we expect the answer to be a whole, countable thing, like a key or a phone. If we were asking about an uncountable mass, like water or sand, we would use mitä.
Why isn't there a word for 'the' before pocket?
Finnish does not have articles like 'a' or 'the'. The single word taskussa can mean 'in a pocket' or 'in the pocket', depending entirely on the context of the conversation.