Breakdown of Ompelija ei pysty venyttämään saumaa.
ei
no / not (negative verb)
pystyä
to be able to, to manage
ompelija
the dressmaker
sauma
the seam
venyttää
to stretch (something)
Questions & Answers about Ompelija ei pysty venyttämään saumaa.
Why is the object saumaa in the partitive case here?
The main reason is that this is a negative sentence (ei pysty). In Finnish, the object of a negative sentence is always in the partitive case. Furthermore, the verb venyttää (to stretch) frequently takes a partitive object even in positive sentences, as stretching is often viewed as an ongoing or incomplete process.
Why does the verb venyttämään end in -mään rather than its basic dictionary form?
The verb pystyä (to be able to / to be capable of) is a verb that strongly dictates the form of the verb that follows it. It always requires the next verb to be in the third infinitive illative form, ending in -maan or -mään. If you wanted to use the basic first infinitive, you would need to use a different verb like voida (e.g., Ompelija ei voi venyttää).
How does the verb venyttää differ from the similar-looking verb venyä?
Venyttää is a transitive verb meaning 'to stretch something' (an action a subject does to an object, like the dressmaker stretching the seam). Venyä is the intransitive equivalent meaning 'to stretch' on its own (like how an elastic waistband stretches). The -ttaa/-ttää ending is a common way to turn an intransitive verb into a causative one (causing the action to happen to something else).
This lesson focuses on the -tavaksi / -täväksi form (passive present participle translative). How could we use that form with this verb?
The -täväksi form translates roughly to 'to be [verb]ed'. If someone gave the dressmaker the seam so she could stretch it, you would take the passive stem (venytetään) and add the ending to get venytettäväksi. You could then say Sauma annettiin ompelijalle venytettäväksi (The seam was given to the dressmaker to be stretched).
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