Breakdown of Sinun ei tarvitse keksiä tekosyitä, vaan voit kertoa totuuden.
sinä
you
ei
no / not (en, et, ei, emme, ette, eivät)
tarvita
to need
kertoa
to tell
voida
can, to be able to
totuus
truth
vaan
but rather (after a negative)
tekosyy
excuse
keksiä
to invent
Questions & Answers about Sinun ei tarvitse keksiä tekosyitä, vaan voit kertoa totuuden.
Why do we use vaan instead of mutta for the word but?
We use vaan (but rather / instead) because it directly corrects or replaces the negative statement that came just before it. The first clause is negative (ei tarvitse), and the second clause offers the true alternative. If you used mutta, it would mean 'You do not need to invent excuses, but regardless, you can tell the truth.'
Why is the subject Sinun (genitive) and the negative verb ei instead of et?
This is a necessity sentence. When expressing what someone must or needs to do using verbs like täytyy or tarvitsee, the subject takes the genitive case (sinun). The main verb is locked in the third-person singular, which is why we use ei tarvitse instead of et tarvitse.
Why does the first object (tekosyitä) use the partitive case while the second object (totuuden) uses the accusative case?
The case depends on whether the clause is negative or positive. Tekosyitä is the object of the negative clause (ei tarvitse), and objects in negative sentences are always partitive. Totuuden is the object of the affirmative clause (voit kertoa), so it takes the standard accusative -n ending to show the action is complete (telling the whole truth).
What parts make up the word tekosyitä?
The base word is tekosyy (excuse), which is a compound of teko (an act or deed) and syy (a reason or cause). Literally, it means a fabricated reason. In this sentence, it has the partitive plural ending -itä.
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