Breakdown of Harmaa väri vanhentaa kasvoja, joskin se on tyylikäs.
olla
to be
se
it / he / she (of a person) / that
väri
color
harmaa
grey
kasvot
face
tyylikäs
stylish
joskin
although / albeit (formal)
vanhentaa
to age (make older)
Questions & Answers about Harmaa väri vanhentaa kasvoja, joskin se on tyylikäs.
How is the verb vanhentaa formed, and what does it literally mean?
It is derived from the adjective vanha (old) using the causative suffix -ntaa. This suffix turns adjectives into transitive verbs that mean to make something that adjective. So, vanhentaa literally means to make something older or to age something.
Why is the word for face (kasvoja) in the partitive plural here?
The noun kasvot (face) is grammatically plural in Finnish even when referring to a single face. It takes the partitive plural form kasvoja here because the action of making the face look older is an ongoing effect, not a completed physical action with a definitive endpoint.
Is the conjunction joskin exactly the same as vaikka?
They are very similar and both mean although, but joskin is a bit more formal or written in tone than the everyday vaikka. It is often used to add a contrasting side-note or concession to a statement, much like albeit in English.
How do we know the pronoun se refers to the color and not the face?
It comes down to grammatical number. Harmaa väri (gray color) is singular, while kasvoja (face) is grammatically plural. Because the pronoun se (it) is singular, it must refer back to the singular color. If it referred to the face, the sentence would use the plural pronoun ne.
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