Breakdown of Tapahtuma on paras mahdollisuus tavata uusia työkavereita.
olla
to be
uusi
new
mahdollisuus
the opportunity
työkaveri
the coworker
paras
best
tapahtuma
the event
tavata
to meet
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Questions & Answers about Tapahtuma on paras mahdollisuus tavata uusia työkavereita.
What does Tapahtuma mean and what case is it in?
Tapahtuma means “event.” It’s in the nominative singular, functioning as the subject of the sentence.
Why is on used here, and what is its role?
On is the third person singular present tense of olla (“to be”). It links the subject tapahtuma with the subject complement paras mahdollisuus….
What does paras mean, and why is it not parempi?
Paras is the superlative form of hyvä (“good”), meaning “the best.” Parempi is the comparative (“better”), but here we need “best” to express the single optimal opportunity.
How does mahdollisuus interact with the infinitive tavata?
Mahdollisuus (“possibility” or “opportunity”) is commonly followed by a first infinitive to express the action you have the chance to do. So mahdollisuus tavata literally means “opportunity to meet.”
Why isn’t there a separate word for “to” before tavata, like in English?
In Finnish, the basic verb form (the first infinitive, ending in -ta/-tä) already carries the meaning of “to [verb].” No extra preposition is needed: tavata alone corresponds to English to meet.
Why is tavata in the first infinitive, and could it be a finite verb form?
After nouns like mahdollisuus, you use the first infinitive to name the action in question. A finite form (e.g. tavataan) would make it the main verb of a clause and change the structure. Here tavata remains part of the noun phrase.
Why are uusia työkavereita in the partitive plural instead of the nominative?
With infinitives, Finnish often uses the partitive for indefinite or incomplete actions. You’re talking about meeting some new coworkers, not all of them, so uusia työkavereita is in the partitive plural.
Could you rephrase this using a nominal form of “to meet” instead of the infinitive?
Yes. A common alternative is:
• Tapahtuma on paras mahdollisuus uusien työkavereiden tapaamiseen.
Here tapaamiseen is the illative of the noun tapaaminen (“meeting”), and uusien työkavereiden is in the genitive plural modifying it.
What does työkaveri literally mean, and how is it formed?
Työkaveri is a compound of työ (“work”) + kaveri (“friend”), so it literally means “work friend” or “coworker.” In this sentence it appears in the partitive plural (työkavereita) to match the infinitive object.