Minulla on lupa käyttää tätä tietokonetta toimistossa.

I have permission to use this computer in the office.

Breakdown of Minulla on lupa käyttää tätä tietokonetta toimistossa.

• minä: I
• tämä: this
• -ssa: in
• tietokone: the computer
• lupa: the permission
• käyttää: to use
• toimisto: the office

Questions & Answers about Minulla on lupa käyttää tätä tietokonetta toimistossa.

Why is minulla used instead of something like minun to express possession?

In Finnish, possession is expressed with a structure that literally means “at me.” Minulla comes from the basic pronoun minä modified to indicate possession (using a case ending similar to the adessive), so the construction minulla on lupa translates to “I have permission.” This is different from English, where the subject “I” directly shows possession.

Why is the verb käyttää in its infinitive form without any personal ending?

The sentence uses käyttää in its basic (infinitive) form because it serves as a complement to the noun lupa (“permission”). In Finnish, when you express having permission to do something, the action is typically presented as an infinitive. Thus, lupa käyttää means “permission to use,” and no further conjugation is needed.

Why are both tätä and tietokonetta in the partitive case?

Finnish requires that adjectives or demonstratives agree with the noun they’re modifying in case. Here, tietokonetta is in the partitive form because the verb käyttää often takes its object in the partitive when referring to an action that doesn’t completely affect the object. Consequently, the demonstrative tätä also appears in the partitive to match tietokonetta.

What does toimistossa mean, and which case is it using?

Toimistossa means “in the office.” It is in the inessive case, which is identified by the -ssa ending in Finnish. The inessive case is commonly used to indicate location, answering the question “where?”

Could you explain the overall structure of the sentence and how its parts work together?

The sentence is divided into two main parts. The first part, Minulla on lupa, means “I have permission,” where minulla indicates possession and lupa is the noun “permission.” The second part, käyttää tätä tietokonetta toimistossa, is an infinitive clause that explains what the permission is for—namely, “to use this computer in the office.” Together, these parts clearly communicate that the speaker is allowed to use the computer while in the office.