Learn Finnish: Ei kestä! Se on helppo. - Don't mention it! It is easy.

Ei kestä! Se on helppo.

Don't mention it! It is easy.

Breakdown of Ei kestä! Se on helppo.

olla

to be

it / he / she (of a person) / that

Questions & Answers about Ei kestä! Se on helppo.

How does Ei kestä mean 'Don't mention it'?

The verb kestää means 'to bear', 'to endure', or 'to last'. Ei kestä literally translates to 'does not bear' or 'does not endure'. As an idiom, it means the favor was no burden for you to bear. It is the most standard way to reply to Kiitos (Thank you).

Why is the verb spelled kestä instead of the dictionary form kestää?

When you make a verb negative in Finnish, you use the negative word ei and a special negative form of the main verb. You find this form by taking the 'I' form of the verb (kestän) and dropping the final -n. That leaves you with kestä.

Is the phrase Ei kestä missing a subject?

Yes, literally it just says 'does not bear'. In spoken Finnish and common idioms, the subject is often dropped completely. You do not need to add se (it) to the beginning of the phrase.

Could I drop the word Se and just say On helppo?

Usually, no. While Finnish lets you drop the pronoun for 'I' and 'you' (like saying Olen onnellinen instead of Minä olen onnellinen), you generally must keep third-person pronouns like se (it) and hän (he/she) in a sentence.