Breakdown of Näissä liuoksissa on yhä reilut viisi millilitraa puhdasta vettä.
tämä
this
olla
to be
viisi
five
vesi
water
Questions & Answers about Näissä liuoksissa on yhä reilut viisi millilitraa puhdasta vettä.
Why is reilut in the plural when the number viisi is singular?
This is a special rule for measurement approximations in Finnish. When using adjectives like reilu (a good amount) or vajaa (just under) before a number, the adjective is put in the plural nominative (reilut, vajaat), even though the numeral (viisi) stays in the singular nominative.
Why does the sentence use the singular verb on instead of the plural ovat?
This is an existential sentence expressing that something exists somewhere. The standard structure is Location + on + Subject. In these sentences, the verb is always in the third-person singular (on), regardless of whether the location (näissä liuoksissa) or the things existing (viisi millilitraa) are plural.
Could I use vielä instead of yhä here?
Yes, absolutely. Both mean still and are often interchangeable. Yhä is slightly more formal and often emphasizes that an ongoing state has remained completely unchanged, whereas vielä is the most common, everyday word you will hear in spoken Finnish.
What is the base form of liuoksissa and how is this form constructed?