Joku varasti pyöräni.

the bicycle

Breakdown of Joku varasti pyöräni.

• joku: someone
• varastaa: to steal

Questions & Answers about Joku varasti pyöräni.

What does joku mean exactly?

Joku means someone or somebody.

It is an indefinite pronoun: you know that a person exists, but you do not know who it is, or you do not want to say who it is.

So in this sentence, Joku varasti pyöräni, joku is the subject: the unknown person who did the stealing.

A useful comparison:

• joku = someone / somebody
• kukaan = anyone / no one, usually in negative sentences or questions

For example:

• Joku tuli. = Someone came.
• Ei kukaan tullut. = No one came.

How is varasti formed?

Varasti is the past tense, third person singular form of the verb varastaa, which means to steal.

So:

• varastaa = to steal
• varasti = stole

In this sentence, the subject is joku (someone), which is grammatically third person singular, so the verb is also third person singular.

Very roughly:

• Minä varastin = I stole
• Sinä varastit = you stole
• Hän/Joku varasti = he/she/someone stole

So varasti is the natural form here because the action happened in the past and the subject is singular.

Why does mean ?