Breakdown of Olimme odottamassa tiedotustilaisuudessa.
olla
to be
odottaa
to wait
tiedotustilaisuus
press conference
Questions & Answers about Olimme odottamassa tiedotustilaisuudessa.
Why use Olimme odottamassa instead of just Odotimme?
While the standard past tense odotimme can translate to both "we waited" and "we were waiting," the construction using olla plus the -massa form (the third infinitive) is explicitly continuous. It strongly emphasizes being right in the middle of the action at that specific moment.
How does the compound word tiedotustilaisuudessa break down?
It is made up of tiedotus (information, announcements, or briefing) and tilaisuus (occasion or event). Together they form the standard term for a press conference or media briefing. The inessive case ending -ssa attaches to the end to mean "at" or "in" the event.
Why do we use the inessive case ending -ssa (in) to mean "at" the press conference?
In Finnish, named events, ceremonies, and formal gatherings typically take the inessive case (-ssa or -ssä) rather than the adessive (-lla or -llä). You are conceptually "inside" the event. You see this same pattern in words like kokouksessa (at a meeting) or konsertissa (at a concert).
If we wanted to specify who we were waiting for, what case would that person take?
The verb odottaa (to wait) requires its object to be in the partitive case, and this rule still applies when using the -massa continuous form. If you were waiting for the minister, you would say Olimme odottamassa ministeriä.
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