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Questions & Answers about Ruoka on hyvä.
What is the function of on in the sentence Ruoka on hyvä?
On is the third person singular present tense form of the verb olla (to be). It acts as the linking verb that connects the subject (ruoka) with its predicate adjective (hyvä).
Why is there no article before ruoka? How does that compare with English?
Finnish does not have articles like a or the. Nouns are used in their base form—here, ruoka is in the nominative case—which means that adding an article isn’t necessary to indicate definiteness as in English.
How does the adjective hyvä agree with the noun ruoka?
In Finnish, adjectives agree with the noun they describe by matching the noun’s number and case. Since ruoka is in the nominative singular, hyvä remains in its basic nominative singular form. There is no gender agreement because Finnish does not mark gender on adjectives.
Can the word order in Ruoka on hyvä be changed, and what impact does that have?
Yes, Finnish word order is quite flexible. Although the standard order is subject–copula–predicate adjective, you can change the order for emphasis or stylistic reasons. For example, Hyvä on ruoka might emphasize hyvä more strongly, but the overall meaning remains similar.
What case is ruoka in, and why is that important?