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Questions & Answers about Sirkus oli loistava.
If this sentence is the answer, how would you ask 'What was the circus like?' using the current lesson's words?
You would ask Millainen sirkus oli? or Minkälainen sirkus oli?. Both translate to 'What was the circus like?' or 'What kind of circus was it?'. Millainen is slightly more common in written Finnish, but both are perfectly interchangeable here.
Why is loistava in the basic nominative case rather than the partitive case (loistavaa)?
Because sirkus is a singular, countable noun. In Finnish, when you use the verb olla (to be) to describe a singular, countable subject, the adjective must be in the nominative case. If the subject were an uncountable mass noun, like water or music, the adjective would take the partitive case.
Is the adjective loistava related to a verb?
Yes, it is formed from the verb loistaa (to shine or to glow). By adding the -va ending, it becomes the active present participle, which often acts as an adjective. So literally, the circus was 'shining', which we naturally translate as 'splendid' or 'brilliant'.