Breakdown of Kun on kova ikävä, ei voi nukkua hyvin.
olla
to be
ei
no / not (negative verb)
nukkua
to sleep
hyvin
well
voida
can, to be able to
kun
when (conjunction)
kova
strong (intense, hard)
ikävä
the longing
Questions & Answers about Kun on kova ikävä, ei voi nukkua hyvin.
Why is there no subject like "ihminen" or "sinä" in this sentence?
In Finnish, to make a general statement meaning "one does something" or "people do something," you can leave the subject out entirely and use the third-person singular verb (on, ei voi). This is known as a generic or "zero subject" sentence.
Does kova ikävä literally mean "hard missing"?
Yes! The adjective kova literally translates to "hard," but it is very commonly used to express "a lot of" or "severe" when paired with feelings, sensations, or weather. For instance, you can also say kova nälkä (very hungry) or kova tuuli (strong wind).
Why is the main verb nukkua in its dictionary form after ei voi?
The verb voida (can, to be able to) always requires the main verb to be in its basic dictionary form (the first infinitive). Because ei voi is the conjugated negative form of voida, the main action verb nukkua just stays in its basic form.
I've seen ikävä used as an adjective. Is it an adjective or a noun here?
Here it is a noun meaning "longing" or "missing." While ikävä can be an adjective meaning "unpleasant" or "sad" (as in ikävä uutinen, unpleasant news), the phrase olla ikävä is the standard noun-based structure for missing someone or something.
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