Viikonloppuna soitan siskolleni.

On the weekend, I call my sister.

Breakdown of Viikonloppuna soitan siskolleni.

• minä: I
• minun: my
• soittaa: to call
• sisko: the sister
• viikonloppu: on the weekend

Questions & Answers about Viikonloppuna soitan siskolleni.

What does viikonloppuna mean, and what is its grammatical role in the sentence?

Viikonloppuna translates as "on the weekend." It is an adverbial form created by adding the suffix -na to the noun viikonloppu (weekend). This formation turns the noun into a time expression that tells us when the action (calling) happens.

Why is there no explicit subject like minä ("I") in the sentence?

In Finnish, the subject pronoun is often omitted because the verb ending already indicates the subject. Here, soitan is the first person singular form of soittaa ("to call"), so it is clear that the speaker is referring to "I" without needing to state it explicitly.

How is the word siskolleni formed, and what does it mean?

Siskolleni means "to my sister." It is formed by taking the base noun sisko (sister), adding the directional suffix -lle (indicating "to" or "for"), and then appending the possessive suffix -ni (meaning "my"). Together, these elements indicate that the action of calling is directed toward the speaker’s sister.

Why is the present tense form soitan used here even though the sentence refers to a future event?

Finnish commonly uses the present tense to describe planned or scheduled future actions when the context makes the time clear. In this sentence, the time adverb viikonloppuna (on the weekend) signals that the call is scheduled for the future, even though the verb is in the present tense.

Why is viikonloppuna placed at the beginning of the sentence?

Finnish word order is quite flexible. Placing the time expression at the beginning is a common stylistic choice that emphasizes when the event is happening. It immediately provides temporal context, letting the listener know that the action will take place during the weekend.