Breakdown of Voit kirjoittaa sujuvasti kertaamalla kielioppia.
kirjoittaa
to write
voida
can, to be able to
sujuvasti
fluently
kielioppi
the grammar
Questions & Answers about Voit kirjoittaa sujuvasti kertaamalla kielioppia.
How does kertaamalla translate to "by reviewing"?
This uses the third infinitive adessive ending (-malla or -mällä), which is the focus of this lesson. It expresses the means or method by which something is done, translating perfectly to "by doing X" in English. Here, the verb kerrata (to review) takes this ending to mean "by reviewing."
Why does kertaamalla have an "rt" when the dictionary form of the verb is kerrata?
Kerrata is a verb type 4, which means it undergoes reverse consonant gradation. The dictionary form has the weak grade (rr), but the third infinitive is built on the strong stem (kertaa-). Adding the -malla ending to this stem gives us kertaamalla.
Why is kielioppia in the partitive case here?
The verb kerrata takes a partitive object when the action is an ongoing process rather than a completed whole. Because you are reviewing grammar in general, rather than finishing one specific, countable grammar unit from start to finish, we use the partitive kielioppia.
How is the adverb sujuvasti built?
It is formed by taking the adjective sujuva (fluent or smooth) and adding the ending -sti. This ending turns adjectives into adverbs, working exactly like the "-ly" suffix in English to make "fluently."