Breakdown of Rinkka painaa sen verran paljon, että hartiat puutuvat nopeasti.
paljon
a lot
nopeasti
fast
että
that (conjunction)
painaa
to weigh
Questions & Answers about Rinkka painaa sen verran paljon, että hartiat puutuvat nopeasti.
What is the difference between using sen verran ... että and niin ... että in this sentence?
Both translate to "so ... that". However, sen verran specifically emphasizes a physical amount, extent, or degree (literally "that amount"). While niin paljon että (so much that) is also perfectly fine here, sen verran paljon että sounds a bit more precise when talking about a physical threshold, like the exact weight required to make your shoulders numb.
Could I use the word reppu here instead of rinkka?
You could, but they refer to different things. A reppu is a standard everyday backpack or school bag. A rinkka is a large, often framed, hiking or trekking backpack. Since a rinkka is designed for heavy loads, it makes perfect sense in a sentence about shoulders going numb!
I learned that painaa means "to press" or "to push". How does it mean "weighs" here?
The verb painaa does mean "to press", but it is also the standard verb for "to weigh" in Finnish. You can think of weight as how much an object physically presses down on a scale (or on your shoulders). If you want to say "I weigh 70 kg", you say Minä painan 70 kiloa.
Does the verb puutuvat (from puutua, to go numb) have anything to do with the word puu (tree/wood)?
Yes, it does! The verb puutua literally means "to become wood-like". In Finnish, when a body part goes numb, gets stiff, or falls asleep, it is described as turning into wood. This is a very helpful mnemonic for remembering the word.