Breakdown of Hän on melko tavallinen mies.
olla
to be
hän
he / she
mies
man
melko
quite, fairly
tavallinen
ordinary, usual
Questions & Answers about Hän on melko tavallinen mies.
How could we rewrite melko tavallinen using the -hko / -hkö suffix from this lesson?
You can replace the adverb melko (fairly) by attaching the suffix directly to the adjective. For adjectives ending in -nen, you use the stem tavallise- and add -hko, resulting in tavallisehko. The sentence would then be Hän on tavallisehko mies.
Is there a difference in tone between melko tavallinen and tavallisehko?
They mean exactly the same thing. Using a separate word like melko or aika is very common in everyday spoken Finnish. The suffix -hko / -hkö does the exact same job but can sound a bit more concise, descriptive, or slightly more formal.
Could I use aika instead of melko here?
Yes, aika tavallinen works perfectly. Aika is extremely common in spoken language, whereas melko sounds just a tiny bit more neutral or standard, but both are completely interchangeable in this context.
If the sentence were in a different case, would melko change?
No, melko is an adverb of degree, so it never declines or changes its form. If you changed the sentence to something like Hän tapasi melko tavallisen miehen (He met a fairly ordinary man), only the adjective and noun take the accusative case, while melko stays exactly the same.
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