Breakdown of Eikö tämä sää ole uskomaton?
tämä
this
olla
to be
ei
no / not (en, et, ei, emme, ette, eivät)
sää
the weather
Questions & Answers about Eikö tämä sää ole uskomaton?
Why does the sentence start with eikö instead of onko?
The word eikö combines the negative verb ei (is not) with the question ending -kö. We use it to ask a negative yes/no question, similar to 'Isn't' in English. In these questions, the question ending always attaches to the negative verb instead of the main verb.
Why is the verb ole used here instead of on?
Because the sentence is negative, triggered by eikö, the main verb olla (to be) must take its negative form. We drop the personal ending from the positive verb and use the bare stem, which for this verb is ole.
What is the rule for the word order in this negative question?
The word order follows a strict pattern. The negative verb with the question ending (eikö) comes first, followed immediately by the subject (tämä sää), and then the main verb (ole).
How is the adjective uskomaton formed?
It comes from the verb uskoa (to believe). Adding the ending -maton or -mätön creates an adjective meaning that something is without that action or unable to be done. So it literally translates to unbelievable.