Questions & Answers about Hänen sisarensa on opettaja.
Why do we need both hänen and the suffix -nsa here?
In standard Finnish, third-person possession requires two parts: the genitive pronoun (hänen for his/her) and the possessive suffix at the end of the noun (here, -nsa). Unlike the first and second person where the pronoun can often be dropped, you cannot drop hänen in standard written Finnish.
Where does the extra e come from in sisarensa?
The basic dictionary word for sister is sisar, which ends in a consonant. To add a possessive suffix like -nsa, we must attach it to the word's vowel stem. The vowel stem for sisar is sisare-, making the final word sisarensa.
Can Hänen sisarensa on opettaja also mean that her sister is a teacher?
Yes! The pronoun hän (he/she) and its genitive form hänen (his/her) are completely gender-neutral. You have to rely on the context of the conversation to know if it means his or her.
Why is opettaja in its basic form instead of the partitive case?
When stating someone's profession or identity in Finnish, we use the basic nominative form. The partitive case would only be used here if the sentence was negative, like Hänen sisarensa ei ole opettaja.
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