Learn Hardcore Finnish: Kotona huomaan, että lautanen on tyhjä. - At home I notice that the plate is empty.

Kotona means “at home.” Finnish expresses location with cases instead of prepositions. The suffix -na is the inessive case ending, indicating “inside/at” a place.

What’s the infinitive form of huomaan, and how is it conjugated here?

The infinitive is huomata (“to notice”). Huomaan is the first person singular present indicative, so it means “I notice.”

What does että mean, and why is there a comma before it?

Että is a conjunction meaning “that,” used to introduce subordinate clauses. In Finnish, you place a comma before subordinate clauses, hence “huomaan, että …”

What is on, and why is it used here?

On is the third person singular present form of olla (“to be”). In lautanen on tyhjä, it functions as “is.”

Why is lautanen in the nominative case?

Lautanen is the subject of the clause lautanen on tyhjä, so it appears in the nominative singular.

Why is tyhjä also in the nominative case?

After olla (“to be”), the predicate (adjective or noun) takes the nominative case to agree with the subject. Hence tyhjä is nominative singular, matching lautanen.

Why are there no articles like “the” or “a” in Finnish?

Finnish has no definite or indefinite articles. Whether something is specific or general is understood from context, not from separate words.

What is the word order in this sentence, and is it flexible?

Here the order is:

Locative adverbial: Kotona
Main verb: huomaan
Subordinate clause: että lautanen on tyhjä
Finnish allows flexibility for emphasis, but starting with the locative is very common.

Can you add the pronoun minä for emphasis?

Yes. Although Finnish typically drops pronouns (verb endings show person), you can say,
Kotona minä huomaan, että lautanen on tyhjä,
to emphasize “I.”