Breakdown of Hyvää yötä! Minä olen väsynyt.
olla
to be
minä
I
väsynyt
tired
hyvää yötä
good night (to someone going to bed)
Questions & Answers about Hyvää yötä! Minä olen väsynyt.
Why are hyvää and yötä in the partitive case?
In Finnish, wishes and greetings are usually put in the partitive case. It is like you are saying (I wish you a) good night. The basic dictionary forms are hyvä and yö.
What is the dictionary form of yötä?
The basic dictionary form is yö, which means night. To make it partitive, we add the ending -tä. We use -tä instead of -ta because of vowel harmony, matching the front vowel ö in yö.
Do I need to include the word minä in this sentence?
No, you can just say Olen väsynyt. Because the verb olen already has the -n ending that means I am, the pronoun minä is optional. Including it just adds a little extra emphasis on yourself.
Why doesn't the word väsynyt have a partitive ending?
In a basic sentence describing a person, like I am tired, the adjective stays in the basic dictionary form. The partitive case used in hyvää yötä is a special rule specifically for greetings.
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