Breakdown of Kun tutustuin uuteen isäntäperheeseeni, kiinnyin heihin todella.
he
they
uusi
new
kun
when (conjunction)
tutustua
to get to know
todella
really (very, intensifier)
isäntäperhe
host family
kiintyä
to become attached to
Questions & Answers about Kun tutustuin uuteen isäntäperheeseeni, kiinnyin heihin todella.
Both tutustuin and kiinnyin are followed by words in the illative case (uuteen isäntäperheeseeni and heihin). Why is that?
Verbs expressing a change of state related to the mind or feelings, like getting to know (tutustua) or becoming attached (kiintyä), require the illative case. In Finnish grammar, you are thought of as mentally moving "into" a state of knowing or being attached to someone or something.
Where does the double 'n' in kiinnyin come from if the dictionary form is kiintyä?
This is due to consonant gradation. The strong consonant cluster -nt- weakens to -nn- when the syllable becomes closed by adding the past tense and personal ending -in. Therefore, kiintyä becomes kiinnyin.
Why is the possessive suffix -ni attached to the end of isäntäperheesee- instead of the full word isäntäperheeseen?
When you add a possessive suffix to a word in the illative case, the final -n of the case ending is dropped. So, the illative word isäntäperheeseen drops its last letter to become isäntäperheeseeni (to my host family).
Why does the adjective uusi change to uuteen in this sentence?
Adjectives must agree in case and number with the noun they modify. Since tutustua requires the illative case, the noun takes the illative form. The adjective uusi (new) must match it, so it takes its illative stem uute- and adds the ending -en.
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