Breakdown of Älä syö noita keksejä, koska niissä on pähkinöitä!
olla
to be
tuo
that
ne
they / those (non-human) / they (of people)
koska
because
syödä
to eat
älä
don't (negative imperative)
keksi
cookie
pähkinä
nut
Questions & Answers about Älä syö noita keksejä, koska niissä on pähkinöitä!
Why is the verb on in the singular when the English translation says "there are nuts"?
This is a classic Finnish existential clause, which starts with a location (niissä) followed by the verb and then the subject. In these clauses, the verb is always in the 3rd person singular (on), even when the subject (pähkinöitä) is plural.
Why is the subject pähkinöitä in the partitive plural instead of the basic nominative plural (pähkinät)?
In an existential clause, if the subject is an undefined plural amount (like "some nuts" or just "nuts"), it must be in the partitive plural. If you used the nominative pähkinät, it would sound like "the specific nuts are in them" rather than "there are nuts in them".
Where does the word niissä come from?
It is the inessive ("in") plural form of the pronoun se (it) / ne (they). Here it means "in them" and refers back to the cookies, providing the location that starts the existential clause.
Why are the words noita keksejä (those cookies) in the partitive plural?
They are the object of a negative command (Älä syö, don't eat). In Finnish, the object of any negative sentence is always in the partitive case.
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