Breakdown of Kumpikin on mukava, mutta toinen suosii kirjallisuutta ja toinen urheilua.
olla
to be
mutta
but
ja
and
toinen
other, another; second
urheilu
sports
mukava
nice
kumpikin
both / each (of two)
kirjallisuus
literature
suosia
to favor
Questions & Answers about Kumpikin on mukava, mutta toinen suosii kirjallisuutta ja toinen urheilua.
Why does toinen ... toinen translate to "one ... the other" instead of "second ... second"?
While toinen is the ordinal number for "second", when it is repeated in a pair like toinen ... ja toinen, it acts as a fixed phrase meaning "one ... and the other". This is the standard way in Finnish to contrast two specific things or people.
Why does the sentence use the singular verb on with kumpikin ("both")?
In Finnish, the pronoun kumpikin is grammatically singular. Therefore, it takes the singular verb on (is) and the singular adjective mukava (nice). It helps to think of kumpikin as literally meaning "each of the two" (Each of the two is nice).
Why are kirjallisuutta and urheilua in the partitive case?
They are the objects of the verb suosia (to favor/prefer). Suosia is a partitive verb, meaning it expresses an ongoing feeling, attitude, or action that doesn't have a clear endpoint. Because of this, what you favor must always be in the partitive case.
What is the base form of kirjallisuutta, and why does it end in -tta?
The nominative (base) form is kirjallisuus (literature). As a helpful rule, Finnish words ending in -uus or -yys form their partitive by replacing the final -s with -tta or -ttä. So, kirjallisuus becomes kirjallisuutta.
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