Breakdown of Laatikot, joihin tavarat pakataan, laitetaan sisäkkäin.
laatikko
box
pakata
to pack
tavara
the item
laittaa
to put
joka
who / which (relative pronoun)
sisäkkäin
inside each other
Questions & Answers about Laatikot, joihin tavarat pakataan, laitetaan sisäkkäin.
How does the suffix -kkäin work in the word sisäkkäin?
The suffix -kkain or -kkäin expresses a mutual physical arrangement, often translating to things being positioned relative to each other. Here, it is attached to the root sisä- (inside) to create sisäkkäin, meaning positioned inside each other. It is the perfect word for describing nesting boxes!
Why is the relative pronoun joihin in the illative (into) case?
The relative pronoun must match the case required by the action in its own clause. The verb pakata (to pack) takes the illative case for the destination you are packing things into. Because the goods are packed into the boxes (laatikoihin), the relative pronoun referring back to those boxes must be the plural illative joihin.
Why are there commas around joihin tavarat pakataan?
This is a relative clause providing extra information about laatikot (the boxes). In Finnish, unlike in English, relative clauses must always be separated from the main sentence by commas. If you remove it, you can clearly see the main sentence: Laatikot laitetaan sisäkkäin (The boxes are put inside each other).
What verb types do the passive verbs pakataan and laitetaan come from?
They are both in the present passive voice, but they are formed differently based on their verb type. Pakata (to pack) is a Type 4 verb, so its passive is formed by adding -an to the strong stem, giving us pakataan. Laittaa (to put) is a Type 1 verb, so we take the weak stem laita- and add -taan to get laitetaan.
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