Learn Finnish: Energian tarve on vähintään tuhat kaloria päivässä. - The need for energy is at least a thousand calories a day.

Energian tarve on vähintään tuhat kaloria päivässä.

The need for energy is at least a thousand calories a day.

Breakdown of Energian tarve on vähintään tuhat kaloria päivässä.

at least (minimum quantity)

Questions & Answers about Energian tarve on vähintään tuhat kaloria päivässä.

Why use vähintään here instead of ainakin, since both mean 'at least'?

While both words translate to 'at least', vähintään is specifically used with measurable quantities, numbers, and concrete scales (like tuhat kaloria). You would use ainakin for more subjective minimums or abstract situations, like saying 'At least it is warm'.

Why is the noun kaloria in the partitive singular instead of plural?

In Finnish, any number greater than one requires the noun following it to be in the partitive singular when the phrase is in its basic form. Even though a thousand calories is conceptually plural, the grammatical rule dictates singular partitive after the number tuhat.

How does päivässä translate to 'a day'?

To express a rate or frequency such as 'per day' or 'a week', Finnish uses the inessive case (-ssa or -ssä). Therefore, päivässä literally means 'in a day', which is the standard way to say 'per day' or 'a day' in contexts like this.

Could I write energian tarve as a single compound word?

Yes, you can. energian tarve uses the genitive to mean 'the need of energy', but you will also frequently see it written as the compound word energiatarve (energy need). The meaning is exactly the same in this context.