Breakdown of Torni on korkeampi kuin linna.
olla
to be
linna
castle
torni
the tower
kuin
than / before (in 'ennen kuin') / like / as
korkea
high, tall
Questions & Answers about Torni on korkeampi kuin linna.
How is korkeampi formed?
The base word is korkea, which means high or tall. To make it comparative (higher), you just add the suffix -mpi to the stem. Since korkea ends in a short vowel, it simply becomes korkeampi.
Why are we using korkea instead of pitkä for tall?
In Finnish, pitkä is used for the height of people (a tall person) or for horizontal length (a long road). For structures like towers, buildings, and mountains, you use korkea.
Why is linna in the basic nominative form here?
When you use the word kuin (than) in a comparison, the two things being compared are put in the same case. Since torni is in the basic nominative form, linna stays in the nominative form too.
Can I say this comparison without using the word kuin?
Yes! Finnish has an alternative way to make comparisons using the partitive case. You could drop kuin and put the second noun in the partitive, moving it before the adjective: Torni on linnaa korkeampi. But using kuin is exactly like English and very common.
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