Älä varasta rahaa.

Because Finnish forms negative commands differently from ordinary negative statements.

• ei is used for normal negation in statements:
  • En varasta rahaa. = I am not stealing / I do not steal money.
• älä is the special negative auxiliary for a singular command:
  • Älä varasta rahaa. = Don’t steal money.

So älä specifically means don’t when you are telling one person not to do something.

The basic dictionary form is varastaa = to steal.

In this sentence, the verb is in the imperative form, used for commands. For many -aa/-ää verbs, the singular imperative drops the final -a/-ä of the infinitive:

• varastaa → varasta! = steal!
• maksaa → maksa! = pay!
• auttaa → auta! = help!

In a negative command, that same imperative main verb appears after älä:

• Älä varasta. = Don’t steal.

So varastaa is the infinitive, and varasta is the command form.

Because rahaa is the partitive singular of raha.

Finnish often uses the partitive for objects when the action is seen as:

• indefinite
• partial
• not referring to a specific whole amount
• or in many negative contexts

Here, rahaa means something like money in a general, uncounted sense, not the money as a complete specific object.

Compare:

• Älä varasta rahaa. = Don’t steal money.
  
  • general, uncountable, indefinite
• Älä varasta rahaa pankista. = Don’t steal money from the bank.

A learner should especially remember that with mass nouns like money, Finnish very often uses the partitive in this kind of sentence.

It is talking to one person.

You can tell from älä, which is the negative imperative for second person singular.

Compare:

• Älä varasta rahaa. = Don’t steal money. (to one person)
• Älkää varastako rahaa. = Don’t steal money. (to several people, or formal/polite)

So if you say Älä varasta rahaa, you are addressing a single person informally.

Yes. In fact, that is the normal thing to do.

Finnish usually does not include the subject pronoun in commands, because the verb form already shows who is being addressed.

So Finnish says:

• Älä varasta rahaa.

not usually:

• Sinä älä varasta rahaa.

Adding sinä would usually sound marked, emphatic, or contrastive, as if you were saying:

• You—don’t steal money.

So in ordinary speech and writing, the pronoun is omitted.

Yes, but Älä varasta rahaa is the most neutral and standard order.

Finnish word order is fairly flexible, but changing it usually changes the emphasis.

For example:

• Älä varasta rahaa.
  Neutral: Don’t steal money.
• Rahaa älä varasta.
  Emphatic/contrastive: Money, don’t steal.
• Älä rahaa varasta.
  Also possible in certain contexts, but less neutral.

For a learner, the safest default is:

• negative imperative + verb + object

So this sentence is in the most natural basic order.

The Finnish ä is not the same as the English a.

It is pronounced somewhat like the vowel in:

• British English cat for many speakers
• or a very front a sound

So älä is roughly:

• AE-lae

But with short, crisp vowels and clear syllables:

• ä-lä

Also important:

• both ä sounds are short
• the stress in Finnish is on the first syllable

So Älä is stressed like:

• Älä

Because vowel length matters in Finnish.

The ending -aa here is part of the partitive singular form of raha:

• raha = money
• rahaa = money / some money / money as a partitive object

In pronunciation, aa is a long vowel, so it is held longer than a single a.

This difference is meaningful in Finnish. Vowel length can change words and grammar, so it is important to notice and pronounce double vowels clearly.

Yes, it is a direct negative command.

Älä varasta rahaa. sounds like:

• a clear instruction
• a warning
• a prohibition

Depending on tone and context, it can sound strict, parental, moral, or practical.

If you wanted to sound less direct, Finnish would usually use a different structure, not just soften this one. For example, Finnish can use more indirect expressions in polite situations, but älä + verb is the basic straightforward way to say don’t do X.

Its main meaning is to steal.

But like English steal, it can sometimes be used in broader or figurative ways depending on context. Still, in a basic sentence like this, the meaning is straightforward: taking money dishonestly or illegally.

Useful related forms:

• varas = thief
• varkaus = theft
• hän varasti = he/she stole
• älä varasta = don’t steal

So this sentence is built from a very common Finnish verb with a clear literal meaning.

Not always. Finnish object case depends on how the action and object are viewed.

With a specific, complete object, Finnish often uses the total object instead of the partitive.

For example:

• Älä varasta rahaa. = Don’t steal money.
  
  • general or indefinite money
• Älä varasta sitä rahaa. = Don’t steal that money.
  
  • more specific

With singular nouns, the total object may look like the genitive or sometimes the nominative, depending on the sentence type. Negative sentences often favor the partitive, but commands with specific objects can get more nuanced.

For this beginner sentence, the important point is:

• rahaa is natural because money is being talked about in a general, uncountable way.