Questions & Answers about Kenelle äiti soittaa nyt?
Why is 'who' translated as kenelle instead of kuka?
In Finnish, the verb soittaa (to call) requires the receiver of the call to have the -lle ending (the allative case). Because mother is calling to someone, the basic word for 'who' (kuka) must become 'to whom' (kenelle).
Where does the word kenelle come from? It doesn't look like kuka at all!
The word kuka (who) is irregular. When you want to add an ending to it, the base word changes into the stem kene-. Then, you just add the -lle ending to get kenelle.
Does soittaa only mean 'to call on the phone'?
It usually means to make a phone call when used with a person and the -lle ending. However, you will also see soittaa used when talking about playing a musical instrument, like playing the piano or guitar.
Could I put the word nyt (now) somewhere else in the sentence?
Yes, Finnish word order is quite flexible. You could safely say Kenelle äiti nyt soittaa? Putting nyt at the end is just a natural way to round off this question.