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Questions & Answers about Rakennus on kallis.
Why is there no the before rakennus?
Finnish has no articles (no a, an or the). Nouns stand alone, and definiteness or indefiniteness is understood from context rather than a separate word.
What does on mean and why is it used here?
on is the 3rd person singular present form of the verb olla, which means “to be.” So Rakennus on kallis literally translates as “Building is expensive,” or more naturally in English, “The building is expensive.”
What case is rakennus in, and why?
rakennus is in the nominative singular, which is the default form for the subject of a sentence. Since it’s the thing doing the “being” (it “is expensive”), it stays in nominative.
Why doesn’t kallis take an ending like Finnish nouns do?
As a predicative adjective (one that follows on and describes the subject), kallis also stays in the nominative singular. Only attributive adjectives (those that directly modify a noun, e.g. kallis rakennus) agree in case and number with the noun.
What’s the difference between kallis rakennus and rakennus on kallis?
- kallis rakennus = “an expensive building” (adjective directly modifying the noun; attributive)
- rakennus on kallis = “the building is expensive” (adjective follows the copula; predicative)
How would I turn this into a question: “Is the building expensive?”
Use the interrogative form of olla by inverting on and the subject, and add the question particle if you like:
Onko rakennus kallis?
Literally “Is-there building expensive?” Finnish questions often start with Onko for “Is…?”
How do I make it negative: “The building is not expensive”?
Negate with ei plus the verb in the correct form:
Rakennus ei ole kallis.
Here ei ole is “is not.”
How would I say “very expensive” or “really expensive”?
Add an adverb before kallis, for example:
- todella kallis = “really/very expensive”
- erittäin kallis = “extremely expensive”
How do I compare: “The building is more expensive than the house”?
Use the comparative form of the adjective and kuin (“than”):
Rakennus on kalliimpi kuin talo.
Here kalliimpi is the comparative of kallis, and kuin talo means “than the house.”
Can I change the word order, like Kallis rakennus on?
You can reorder for emphasis, but the neutral, natural order in Finnish is Subject-Verb-Predicate (Rakennus on kallis). Starting with Kallis sounds poetic or marked, as in “As for an expensive one, the building is.” It’s not common in everyday speech.