Minun mielestäni bussi on nopeampi kuin pyörä, jos sinulla on kiire aamulla.

In my opinion, the bus is faster than a bicycle if you are in a hurry in the morning.

Breakdown of Minun mielestäni bussi on nopeampi kuin pyörä, jos sinulla on kiire aamulla.

• olla: to be
• minun: my
• sinä: you
• kiire: the hurry
• jos: if
• nopea: fast
• bussi: the bus
• pyörä: the bicycle
• kuin: than

Questions & Answers about Minun mielestäni bussi on nopeampi kuin pyörä, jos sinulla on kiire aamulla.

What does Minun mielestäni mean, and why is it structured with a possessive form?

Minun mielestäni translates to “in my opinion.” In this phrase, mielestäni already has the first-person singular suffix -ni attached, so it literally means “in my mind of mine.” The addition of minun (meaning “my”) emphasizes or clarifies the speaker’s perspective, although many speakers often just say mielestäni.

Why is the word kuin used after nopeampi, and what is its function in the sentence?

Kuin means “than” and is used to introduce the second part of a comparison. In the sentence, bussi on nopeampi kuin pyörä literally means “the bus is faster than the bicycle,” with kuin directly linking the comparative adjective nopeampi (“faster”) to what it is being compared with, namely pyörä.

Why is the adjective in its comparative form nopeampi rather than using an adverb like nopeasti?

In Finnish, when making a direct comparison between two nouns, you use the comparative form of the adjective. Nopea (fast) becomes nopeampi (faster) to compare characteristics between the bus and the bicycle. An adverb like nopeasti would mean “quickly” and wouldn’t be appropriate for describing the inherent attribute of being fast.

How is the conditional clause jos sinulla on kiire aamulla structured, and what does it mean?

The clause begins with the conjunction jos, which means “if.” The phrase sinulla on kiire literally translates as “you have hurry,” which is the common Finnish construction for saying “you are in a hurry.” Aamulla means “in the morning.” So the entire clause translates to “if you are in a hurry in the morning.” This reflects Finnish’s tendency to express certain states using possession rather than a direct adjective.

Why is there a comma before the conditional clause jos sinulla on kiire aamulla?

In Finnish punctuation, commas are commonly used to separate main clauses from subordinate clauses. The comma before jos sinulla on kiire aamulla signals that a conditional clause is beginning, helping readers understand the sentence’s structure and the relationship between the idea that “the bus is faster” and the condition “if you are in a hurry in the morning.”

Why are there no articles like “the” or “a” before bussi and pyörä in the sentence?

Finnish does not have articles such as “the” or “a.” Nouns appear without any additional words to indicate definiteness. Context and word order are used instead to convey whether a noun is being referred to in a specific or general sense. Therefore, bussi and pyörä can be understood correctly without articles.