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Olihan tanssijan liike ammattimainen, mutta silti kylmä ja konemainen.

Olihan tanssijan liike ammattimainen, mutta silti kylmä ja konemainen.
The dancer's movement was professional, after all, but still cold and robotic.
From Lesson 317:Adjectives of resemblance (-mainen)·Finnish

Questions & Answers about Olihan tanssijan liike ammattimainen, mutta silti kylmä ja konemainen.

Both ammattimainen and konemainen end in the -mainen suffix. How does this change the meaning of the base words?
The suffix -mainen (or -mäinen) means '-like' or 'having the characteristics of.' It attaches to nouns to create adjectives. Here, ammatti (profession) becomes ammattimainen (professional), and kone (machine) becomes konemainen (machine-like or robotic).
How do we know whether to use -mainen or -mäinen for these words?
You follow standard vowel harmony rules based on the root word. Ammatti has an 'a', and kone has an 'o'. Because 'a' and 'o' are back vowels, both words dictate the back-vowel version of the suffix, -mainen. If the root only had front and neutral vowels (like kesä), it would take -mäinen (e.g., kesämäinen).
Why does the sentence start with the verb Olihan instead of the subject Tanssijan liike?
Starting a clause with a verb plus the clitic -han/-hän is a common way to express a concession, similar to saying 'To be sure...' or 'It's true that...' in English. It acknowledges a fact but sets up an expectation that a contrasting point is coming, which is then delivered by mutta silti (but still).
Could I use liikkuminen instead of liike for 'movement' here?
It wouldn't sound as natural. Liikkuminen refers to the general action or process of moving around (like commuting or exercising). Liike refers to a specific physical motion or the aesthetic quality of motion, which is exactly what you evaluate when watching a dancer.
What is the exact role of silti in the phrase mutta silti?
While you could just use mutta (but), adding silti (still or nevertheless) strongly emphasizes the contrast. Coupled with the -han clitic in the first clause, it reinforces that despite the dancer's undeniable professionalism, the coldness of the performance remains the main takeaway.

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