Questions & Answers about Me syömme ennen elokuvaa.
Wait, the lesson is about postpositions with the genitive. Why does ennen come before the word, and why is elokuvaa in the partitive case?
Great catch! While this lesson focuses on postpositions (which come after a genitive word), Finnish also has a few prepositions (which come before the word). ennen (before) is one of the most common prepositions, and it requires the word following it to be in the partitive case (elokuvaa), not the genitive.
How do I form the partitive case for elokuva here?
The base word is elokuva (film or movie). Since it ends in a single vowel (-a), you simply add another -a to the end to make the partitive form: elokuvaa.
Is it possible to use ennen as a postposition instead, like elokuvan ennen?
No, ennen is strictly a preposition. You will always see it placed before the noun, just like in English. It cannot be flipped around to come after the word like the postpositions you are learning.
Could I drop the word Me and just say Syömme ennen elokuvaa?
Yes! Because the verb ending -mme already tells us the subject is we, the pronoun Me is completely optional. Including it here just makes the sentence sound a bit more complete or adds a slight emphasis to who is doing the eating.
Learn Me syömme ennen elokuvaa and more in Finnish
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free