Iltapäivä on kaunis.

to be

Breakdown of Iltapäivä on kaunis.

• kaunis: beautiful
• iltapäivä: the afternoon

Questions & Answers about Iltapäivä on kaunis.

What does Iltapäivä on kaunis translate to, and what does each word mean individually?

In this sentence, iltapäivä means "afternoon", on is the third-person singular form of the verb olla meaning "is", and kaunis means "beautiful". So the sentence translates literally as "Afternoon is beautiful", which in natural English would typically be rendered as "The afternoon is beautiful." Note that Finnish does not use articles like "the."

Why is there no definite article (like "the") before iltapäivä even though the English translation includes one?

Finnish does not have articles at all—no definite ("the") or indefinite ("a/an") articles exist in the language. The noun iltapäivä stands on its own, and the context determines specificity in Finnish. This is why even though English needs an article for natural expression, Finnish simply uses the unmodified noun.

What is the role of the word on in the sentence, and why is it placed where it is?

The word on is the third-person singular conjugation of the verb olla (to be). Its role is to act as a linking verb connecting the subject iltapäivä with the predicate adjective kaunis. In Finnish, the typical sentence order is subject–verb–predicate, which is why on appears between iltapäivä and kaunis.

How do adjectives work in Finnish? Does kaunis change form to match iltapäivä, or does it remain in its basic form?

In Finnish, adjectives agree with the noun they modify in terms of case and number. In this sentence, both iltapäivä (afternoon) and kaunis (beautiful) are in the nominative singular form. Since they match in case and number, kaunis remains in its basic form. In other contexts, when the noun takes a different case, the adjective would be inflected accordingly to match.

Is Iltapäivä on kaunis a complete, grammatically correct sentence in Finnish even though it seems shorter than typical English sentences?

Yes, it is a complete and grammatically correct sentence in Finnish. Finnish often omits elements that English requires, such as articles or auxiliary words, when the meaning is clear. This sentence follows the standard structure of subject–linking verb–predicate adjective, making it both concise and correct in Finnish.