Breakdown of Me emme ole tänään kirkossa.
olla
to be
me
we
ei
no / not (en, et, ei, emme, ette, eivät)
tänään
today
kirkko
church
Questions & Answers about Me emme ole tänään kirkossa.
Why does kirkossa have only one 'k' in the middle, if the word for church is kirkko?
This happens because of a rule called consonant gradation. When you add an ending like -ssa to a word, a double consonant like kk often shrinks to a single k. So, kirkko drops a 'k' and becomes kirkossa.
Why is "are not" translated as two words, emme ole?
In Finnish, "not" is an actual verb that changes depending on who is doing the action. emme specifically means "we do not" or "we are not". The main verb olla (to be) then takes its negative form, ole, which always stays the same after a negative verb.
Does the -ssa ending in kirkossa just mean "in"?
Yes! The -ssa (or -ssä) ending is called the inessive case. You attach it to the end of a word to mean that something is "in" or "inside" that place.
Could I put tänään at the end of the sentence instead?
Yes, you could say Me emme ole kirkossa tänään. Finnish word order is flexible. Putting the time word (tänään) right before the location (kirkossa) is just a very common, neutral way to structure the sentence.
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