Questions & Answers about Miksi sinä istut tikkailla?
Why does tikkailla have a plural ending (-illa) if the English translation says "the ladder" singular?
Just like "pants" or "scissors" in English, the Finnish word for a ladder (tikkaat) is always a plural word. Because of this, it must use plural case endings, like the adessive plural -illa we see here.
How do we build the adessive plural form tikkailla?
We start with the plural stem of the word, which is tikkai-. The -i- in the middle is the plural marker. Then we add the adessive ending -lla (meaning "on" or "at") to the end, giving us tikkailla.
Why do we use the adessive case (-lla/-illä) for sitting on a ladder?
The adessive case generally translates to "on" or "on top of". Since you sit on top of the rungs of a ladder rather than inside it, Finnish uses the adessive case here.
Could I drop the word sinä (you) from this sentence?
Yes! Because the verb istut (you sit) already ends with the personal suffix -t, the word sinä is optional. Including it just adds a little bit of emphasis, like asking "Why do YOU sit on the ladder?".
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