Breakdown of Kelpaisko sulle tää vanha auto, vai oisko uusi parempi?
tämä
this
olla
to be
auto
car
sinä
you
vanha
old
uusi
new
vai
or (in questions)
parempi
better
kelvata
to be acceptable
Questions & Answers about Kelpaisko sulle tää vanha auto, vai oisko uusi parempi?
How do kelpaisko and oisko relate to standard Finnish, and what happens to the conditional ending?
In standard Finnish, these would be kelpaisiko and olisiko. In colloquial language, the conditional marker -isi- often drops its final i, leaving just -is. The question clitic -ko is then attached directly to this clipped form.
Why does kelpaisko require the word sulle instead of just sä or sua?
The verb kelvata (to be good enough, to suit) requires the allative case, which uses the -lle ending, to indicate the person who is being pleased. Sulle is the spoken form of sinulle, so the sentence literally translates as would this old car be good enough for you.
Why is vai used here for the word or instead of tai?
In Finnish, vai is used exclusively in questions where the listener is expected to choose between mutually exclusive options. Because the speaker is asking the listener to pick either the old car or the new one, vai is required. Tai is used for or in regular statements.
What are the standard Finnish equivalents of sulle and tää?
Sulle is the colloquial form of sinulle (to you), and tää is the colloquial form of tämä (this).
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