Breakdown of Päivällinen on kello kuusi.
olla
to be
kello
watch / clock (the time)
kuusi
six
päivällinen
dinner
Questions & Answers about Päivällinen on kello kuusi.
Since this lesson is about the partitive case for food, why isn't päivällinen in the partitive here?
In this sentence, päivällinen is the subject, not the object. We are stating when the dinner is, using the verb olla (to be). The partitive rule you are learning applies to objects, like when you are actively eating an indefinite amount of food (for example, Syön päivällistä meaning 'I am eating dinner'). Subjects are usually in the basic nominative form.
What is the difference between päivällinen and illallinen?
Both words translate to 'dinner' in English, but they refer to different times of the day. Päivällinen is typically a warm meal eaten in the late afternoon or early evening, right after the workday. Illallinen is a later evening dinner, related to the word ilta, which means evening.
Where is the word for 'at' in kello kuusi?
When stating a time exactly on the hour using kello (clock), Finnish doesn't use a separate word for 'at'. You simply use kello followed by the basic number. Literally, this sentence translates to 'Dinner is clock six'.
Can I drop the word kello and just say Päivällinen on kuusi?
Not quite! If you drop kello and just use the basic number kuusi, it sounds like you are saying 'Dinner is the number six'. To say that something happens 'at six', you must include the word kello with the basic number. In later lessons, you will learn another way to say this by adding a special ending to the number itself.
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