Learn Hardcore Finnish: Varasin myös hotellihuoneen, koska yövymme keskustassa. - I also reserved a hotel room because we will stay in the center.

Varasin is the 1st person singular past indicative of varata (“to reserve”). It literally means “I reserved.” Finnish often uses the simple past (imperfect) to describe completed actions, so varasin tells us you made the reservation at some point in the past.

What role does myös play, and why is it placed after the verb?

Myös means “also” or “too.” It shows that reserving a room was an additional action (perhaps to something already mentioned). In Finnish the adverb myös typically comes close to the word or phrase it modifies; placing it after varasin emphasizes that “in addition to whatever else I did, I also reserved a hotel room.”

Why is hotellihuoneen in the –en form? Why not the nominative or partitive?

The form hotellihuoneen is the singular genitive/accusative of hotellihuone (“hotel room”). In Finnish, if you complete an action on a specific, countable object, you put it in the genitive (sometimes called the accusative) singular. Since you reserved one definite room, it takes -en rather than the partitive hotellihuonetta (which would imply an incomplete action or unspecified quantity).

Is hotellihuone one word or two, and how do such compounds work?

Hotellihuone is a compound noun made of hotelli (“hotel”) + huone (“room”). In Finnish, you often join nouns directly to make compounds, with the first element typically in the stem form (hotelli → hotelli-) and the second in its basic form. The meaning is the sum of the parts: “hotel room.”

What does koska mean here, and could I use kun instead?

Koska means “because” (indicating a reason). It introduces a causal clause (“because we are staying in the center”). You cannot replace it with kun in this context—kun can sometimes mean “when” or “since,” but for a straightforward “because” you need koska (or sillä in colloquial speech).

Why is yövymme in the present tense when the first verb is past?

Yövymme is the 1st person plural present indicative of yöpyä (“to spend the night”). Even though varasin is past, you use the present for ongoing or future plans: “I reserved a room, because we are (going to) stay overnight in the center.” Finnish often uses the present to talk about scheduled future events.

What case is keskustassa, and why is it used here?

Keskustassa is the inessive case (marked by -ssa) of keskusta (“center” or “downtown”), meaning “in the center.” Use the inessive to express that an action takes place inside a location. If you were going into the center you’d say keskustaan (allative), but for “staying in the center” you need keskustassa.