Log inSign up

Itse asiassa ongelma on helppo ratkaista.

Itse asiassa ongelma on helppo ratkaista.
As a matter of fact, the problem is easy to solve.
From Lesson 335:Structuring an argument (ensinnäkin, toisin sanoen)·Finnish

Questions & Answers about Itse asiassa ongelma on helppo ratkaista.

Why is ongelma in the nominative (basic) case rather than an object case, since it is the thing being solved?
In sentences using adjectives of difficulty like helppo (easy) or vaikea (hard), the logical object of the action usually becomes the grammatical subject of the sentence. Because ongelma acts as the subject here, it takes the nominative case instead of the genitive or partitive. The sentence is structured identically to English: "The problem is easy to solve."
How exactly does the phrase itse asiassa literally break down to mean "actually" or "as a matter of fact"?
It literally translates to "in the matter itself." It combines the pronoun itse (itself) with asiassa, which is the inessive (in or inside) case of the noun asia (matter, thing, or issue). This is the standard, fixed idiom for "actually" in Finnish.
How would the grammar change if I wanted to specify who is solving it, such as "It is easy for us to solve the problem"?
You would add the person in the genitive case right before the adjective, creating a structure similar to necessity sentences. The sentence would become Itse asiassa meidän on helppo ratkaista ongelma. Notice that the object ongelma still remains in the nominative case.

Learn Itse asiassa ongelma on helppo ratkaista and more in Finnish

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
  • ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free
Start learning Finnish →