Breakdown of Mekaanikot olivat peloissaan varikolla.
olla
to be
mekaanikko
mechanic
varikko
pit
peloissaan
scared (in a state of fear)
Questions & Answers about Mekaanikot olivat peloissaan varikolla.
How is peloissaan formed and what does it literally mean?
Peloissaan comes from the noun pelko (fear). It is put into the plural inessive case (peloissa-) and gets the third-person possessive suffix (-an). Literally, it means "in their fears," but it is the standard way to express being scared or afraid when referring to the subject's current state.
Why do we use the possessive suffix -an in peloissaan?
The possessive suffix ties the state back to the subject of the sentence. Because mekaanikot is a third-person plural subject ("they"), we use the third-person suffix -an (which is a vowel-matching variant of -nsa). It acts like "their" in this context.
Where did the 'k' from pelko go when making peloissaan?
This is due to consonant gradation. Adding the plural marker -i- and the inessive ending -ssa closes the syllable. This triggers the weak consonant grade, causing the k to disappear.
English says "in the pit", so why does Finnish use the adessive varikolla instead of the inessive varikossa?
In Finnish, certain functional outdoor spaces, yards, and stations take the adessive case (-lla / -llä, meaning "on" or "at") rather than the inessive (-ssa / -ssä, meaning "in"). A varikko (depot, pit, or yard) traditionally belongs to this group.