Yö on pimeä, mutta kaunis.

The night is dark, but beautiful.

Breakdown of Yö on pimeä, mutta kaunis.

• olla: to be
• mutta: but
• kaunis: beautiful
• pimeä: dark
• yö: the night

Questions & Answers about Yö on pimeä, mutta kaunis.

Why does the sentence use pimeä instead of another word for dark?

pimeä is the basic adjective for dark in Finnish. In certain contexts, you might see other adjectives such as synkkä (often describing a gloomier scene), but pimeä is the most straightforward choice when you simply mean “lacking light.”

Why is there no article before Yö?

Finnish doesn’t have articles like a or the. Where you’d say The night in English, Finnish just uses Yö, relying on context to convey definiteness or indefiniteness.

What does mutta mean, and why is it placed here?

mutta means but in Finnish. It’s used to connect two contrasting ideas: Yö on pimeä (dark), mutta kaunis (but beautiful). This structure is similar to English: “The night is dark, but beautiful.”

Why do pimeä and kaunis both have ä in them?

In Finnish, ä is considered a separate vowel from a, and it typically affects how words are pronounced and even how suffixes might be added. pimeä ends in -ä to form the adjective meaning “dark,” and kaunis is another adjective form meaning “beautiful.” The presence of ä instead of a reflects Finnish vowel harmony and pronunciation rules.

Is on always used like is in English?

In many cases, yes. on comes from the verb olla (to be). It’s the third-person singular form, usually translating directly to is in English. When describing a single subject in Finnish, on functions much like is does in English.