Question 1

Why does this sentence use ne for "they" instead of he?

Accepted Answer

In standard Finnish, he is used for people and ne for things. However, in everyday spoken Finnish (puhekieli), native speakers almost always use ne for both people and things.

Question 2

If ne means "they" (plural), why is the verb on singular? Shouldn't it be plural?

Accepted Answer

This is a major rule of spoken Finnish! When you use ne as the subject, the verb drops the plural ending and uses the third-person singular (the "he/she/it" form). So instead of the standard he ovat (they are), spoken Finnish simply uses ne on. You will hear this with all verbs, like ne tulee (they come) instead of he tulevat.

Question 3

What does luona mean, and why is it used with mun?

Accepted Answer

Luona is a postposition meaning "at the place of" or "by". In Finnish, postpositions usually require the word right before them to be in the genitive (possession) case. Here, mun is the spoken form of minun (my), making mun luona translate to "at my place".

Question 4

I've also learned the word luokse. Could I use that instead of luona here?

Accepted Answer

Not in this exact sentence. Luona describes being stationary at a place, which matches the verb on (is/are). Luokse implies movement to a place. You would use luokse if a verb of motion was used, like Ne tulee mun luokse (They are coming to my place).

Ne on mun luona tänään.

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