Breakdown of Veljenpoikakin perii talon.
talo
house
-kin
also / too (suffix)
veljenpoika
nephew
periä
inherit
Questions & Answers about Veljenpoikakin perii talon.
The word for nephew is veljenpoika. How does this relate to the genitive?
Veljenpoika is a compound word made of veljen (the genitive of veli, meaning "brother's") and poika (son). It literally means "brother's son", which perfectly answers the question kenen poika? (whose son?).
What does the -kin ending do in veljenpoikakin?
The suffix -kin means "also" or "too". Attaching it directly to the noun emphasizes that the nephew, too, inherits the house (implying that someone else is also inheriting).
Is talon in the genitive case to mean "of the house"?
No, here talon is the direct object of the verb perii (inherits). Because the action affects the whole house, the object takes the -n ending (often called the genitive-accusative). It looks exactly like the genitive case, but its job here is to mark a total object.
How would we ask "Whose house does the nephew inherit?" using this sentence's vocabulary?
You would use the genitive interrogative pronoun kenen (whose) and say: Kenen talon veljenpoika perii? Notice that the question word and the noun it modifies (kenen talon) stay together at the start of the question.
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