Learn Hardcore Finnish: Auto on pysäköity talon ulkopuolella, koska piha on täynnä. - The car is parked outside the house because the yard is full.

pysäköity is the passive past participle of pysäköidä. When combined with on it forms the perfect passive, showing an action that has been completed (has been parked). By contrast, pysäköidään is the present passive, meaning one parks or people park – it does not indicate that the car is already in that state.

What exactly does on pysäköity mean – is it is parked or has been parked?

In Finnish on pysäköity literally means has been parked (perfect passive). In English you can translate it as The car is parked because English often uses the simple passive for both “is…” and “has been…,” but the Finnish form highlights that the parking action is complete.

Why is talo in the genitive case in talon ulkopuolella?

Adverbs of location like ulkopuolella (“outside of”) require the reference point to be in genitive. So talo (“house”) becomes talon (“of the house”) to say outside of the house.

What’s the difference between ulkopuolella and ulkona?

ulkopuolella means outside of a specific object or area (focus on the boundary). ulkona means outside in general or outdoors, without specifying what you’re outside of.

Why is there a comma before koska? In English we often write sentences without it.

In Finnish, when a subordinate clause introduced by koska follows the main clause, it is normally separated by a comma.

When should I use koska versus kun for because or when?

Use koska to state a reason (because). Use kun to talk about time (when or once). For example kun piha on täynnä would mean when the yard is full (time), whereas koska piha on täynnä means because the yard is full (reason).

Why is piha in the nominative in piha on täynnä? What case does a thing take if I specify what it’s full of?

Here piha is the subject, so it stays in nominative. If you specify what it’s full of, that object goes in the partitive. For example piha on täynnä autoja (autoja = partitive plural of auto).

Could I omit on and just say Auto pysäköity talon ulkopuolella?

No. Finnish requires the linking verb olla (here on) to connect the participle pysäköity with the subject. Without on the sentence is ungrammatical.

There are no words equivalent to the or a in this sentence. Is that normal?

Yes. Finnish does not use articles. Auto can mean a car, the car, or just car depending on context.

Is the word order important here? Could I say Talon ulkopuolella on auto instead?

Yes, you can say Talon ulkopuolella on auto, but that topicalizes outside of the house and means out by the house there is a car. The original Auto on pysäköity talon ulkopuolella focuses on the car and then gives its location.