Word
Tuo vaaleahko nainen on minun kummitätini.
Meaning
That somewhat blonde woman is my godmother.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Questions & Answers about Tuo vaaleahko nainen on minun kummitätini.
How does the suffix -hko change the meaning of vaalea here?
The suffix -hko or -hkö moderates an adjective's intensity, similar to adding "-ish", "somewhat", or "fairly" in English. Since vaalea means "light" or "blonde", vaaleahko translates to "somewhat blonde" or "lightish".
Why does vaaleahko take the -hko ending instead of -hkö?
This is a great vowel harmony refresher! Even though vaalea contains the neutral vowel e, it also contains the back vowel a. The presence of any back vowel (a, o, u) dictates that the back-vowel variant of a suffix, which in this case is -hko, must be used.
How is the word kummitätini built?
It combines kummi (godparent) and täti (aunt), followed by the first-person possessive suffix -ni (my). In Finnish, a godmother is literally a "god-aunt", just as a godfather is kummisetä (literally "god-uncle").
Is it necessary to use both the pronoun minun and the possessive suffix -ni together?