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Missä koira on? Onko se pihalla?

Missä koira on? Onko se pihalla?
Where is the dog? Is it in the yard?
From Lesson 17:External location (-lla/-llä)·Finnish

Questions & Answers about Missä koira on? Onko se pihalla?

Why does pihalla translate to "in the yard" if the -lla ending usually means "on"?
The adessive ending -lla / -llä normally means "on" or "at". However, with certain outdoor places like piha (yard) or tori (market square), Finnish uses this external location ending even though English says "in". So pihalla means "in the yard" or simply "outside".
How does the word Onko turn the sentence into a question?
Onko is the verb on (is) combined with the question ending -ko. To make a yes/no question in Finnish, you add -ko or -kö to the word you are asking about and move it to the very front of the sentence.
Why is the dog referred to as se (it)?
In standard Finnish grammar, hän is only used for humans (he/she), while se (it) is used for animals and objects. Pets are grammatically se, though in everyday spoken Finnish, people often use se for humans too!
Does the word Missä (where) also have a location ending?
Yes! Missä is built from the root of mikä (what). It has the internal location ending -ssä (in), so missä literally translates to "in what?", which is how Finnish says "where?".

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