Question 1

Why is the object päätöksen (total object) instead of päätöstä (partitive), since the judge is only trying to do it?

Accepted Answer

The object's case is linked to the infinitive verb (perustella). Because the judge's goal is to fully justify the decision, it takes the total object form ending in -n. If you were emphasizing an ongoing but perhaps unsuccessful struggle to justify it, you could use the partitive päätöstä.

Question 2

Why is the second verb perustella in its basic dictionary form, rather than a form like perustelemaan?

Accepted Answer

The verb yrittää (to try) requires the following verb to be in the first infinitive (the basic dictionary form). This is a great rule to memorize, as it differs from other common verbs you have learned like oppia (to learn) or auttaa (to help), which require the -maan/-mään form.

Question 3

The word perustella looks related to perustaa (to found / establish). Are they connected?

Accepted Answer

Yes! Perustella is created by adding the suffix -ella to the root of perustaa. While perustaa means to establish a physical foundation (like starting a company), perustella means to establish a logical foundation—in other words, to justify or give reasons for something.

Question 4

How could I expand this sentence using the conjunction sillä (for / because) from our current lesson?

Accepted Answer

You could add a reason after it, for example: Tuomari yrittää perustella päätöksen, sillä se on yllättävä (The judge tries to justify the decision, because it is surprising). Just remember that when you use sillä to connect clauses, you must always put a comma before it, and it can never be the very first word of a sentence.

Tuomari yrittää perustella päätöksen.

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