Breakdown of Ongelma oli niin vakava, että tunnelma pysyi negatiivisena.
olla
to be
ongelma
problem
niin
so
että
that (conjunction)
pysyä
to stay (remain in a state or position)
tunnelma
atmosphere
negatiivinen
negative
vakava
serious
Questions & Answers about Ongelma oli niin vakava, että tunnelma pysyi negatiivisena.
Why is negatiivinen in the essive case (negatiivisena)?
This is because of the verb pysyä (to stay / remain). In Finnish, when you express the state that something remains in, the verb pysyä requires the following adjective or noun to be in the essive case (ending in -na or -nä).
Why is vakava (serious) in the basic nominative form, but negatiivisena gets the essive ending?
The verb olla (to be) typically takes the nominative or partitive for describing things, so we simply say ongelma oli vakava. However, verbs of permanence like pysyä have a strict rule (a rection) requiring the essive case to describe the continuing condition.
How would the sentence change if the atmosphere became negative instead of remaining negative?
You would use a verb of change like muuttua (to turn into) which requires the translative case (ending in -ksi). The end of the sentence would become tunnelma muuttui negatiiviseksi.
Does the niin... että structure work exactly like "so... that" in English?
Yes! Niin translates to "so" and että translates to "that". You can use this exact pair to show a direct cause and effect, just as you do in English.
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