Word
Tunnetulla kriitikolla on pöytävaraus.
Meaning
The famous critic has a table reservation.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Tunnetulla kriitikolla on pöytävaraus.
olla
to be
tunnettu
famous (well-known)
kriitikko
the critic
pöytävaraus
the table reservation
Questions & Answers about Tunnetulla kriitikolla on pöytävaraus.
Why do both tunnetulla and kriitikolla end in -lla?
This is the Finnish "have" construction. Finnish doesn't have a direct verb for "to have"; instead, it uses the adessive case (-lla/-llä) plus the verb on, literally meaning "at the famous critic is". Because the noun kriitikko is in the adessive case (kriitikolla), the adjective describing it must agree and take the exact same -lla ending.
Where does the adjective tunnettu (famous) come from?
It is actually the passive past participle of the verb tuntea (to know, to feel). While it literally translates to "known" or "recognized", it is the standard way to say "famous" or "well-known" in Finnish.
Why does kriitikko lose a k when it becomes kriitikolla?
This is a standard example of consonant gradation. The base word kriitikko has a strong double kk. Adding the -lla ending closes the final syllable, which forces the consonants to step down to the weak grade, leaving just a single k.
Why is pöytävaraus in the basic nominative case here instead of the partitive?