Breakdown of Alamme harjoitella potkua, joka pysäyttää hyökkääjän.
harjoitella
to practice
alkaa
to start
joka
who / which (relative pronoun)
pysäyttää
to stop (someone or something)
potku
the kick
hyökkääjä
the attacker
Questions & Answers about Alamme harjoitella potkua, joka pysäyttää hyökkääjän.
Why is the second verb in its basic form (harjoitella), and how would the sentence change if we used the verb ruveta instead of alkaa?
The verb alkaa (to start) requires the following verb to be in the 1st infinitive, which is the basic dictionary form (harjoitella). If we used ruveta (to start / to get to doing) instead, the next verb would need to be in the 3rd infinitive illative form: rupeamme harjoittelemaan.
Why is the kick in the partitive case (potkua)?
The verb harjoitella (to practice) expresses an ongoing, continuous process rather than a finished result. Because of this, its object must be in the partitive case (potkua), even though you are practicing one specific kick.
Why does the attacker end in -n (hyökkääjän)?
The word hyökkääjän is the total object of the verb pysäyttää (to stop). Unlike practicing, stopping someone is a completed action with a clear result. Therefore, the object takes the genitive-like accusative ending -n.
Could I use the verb pysähtyä instead of pysäyttää here?
No, because pysäyttää means to stop something else (like an attacker or a car). Pysähtyä means to come to a stop yourself. If the attacker just stopped on their own, you would say: Hyökkääjä pysähtyy.
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