Learn Hardcore Finnish: Hotellihuone on siisti ja hiljainen.

on is the third‐person singular present form of the verb olla (to be). It functions as a copula linking the subject (Hotellihuone) with its predicate adjectives (siisti and hiljainen), equivalent to English “is.”

Why are there no articles before hotellihuone?

Finnish does not have definite or indefinite articles (no “a,” “an,” or “the”). Definiteness and indefiniteness are inferred from context or other words, not from separate articles.

Why is hotellihuone written as one word instead of two?

Finnish regularly forms compound nouns by combining two (or more) words into one. hotelli (hotel) + huone (room) → hotellihuone (hotel room).

Why aren’t siisti and hiljainen inflected with case endings?

Because they are predicate adjectives following the copula on. Predicate adjectives agree in case (nominative) and number (singular) with the subject, but do not take extra endings beyond the base nominative singular form.

Why is ja used between the adjectives, and could you use something else?

ja is the standard coordinating conjunction meaning “and.” You could also use sekä (“as well as”) for a slightly more formal nuance, but ja is the everyday choice. You wouldn’t use a comma alone in Finnish the way you might in English.

What is the word order in Hotellihuone on siisti ja hiljainen?

The neutral word order is Subject (Hotellihuone) – Verb (on) – Predicate (siisti ja hiljainen). Finnish word order is relatively flexible, but this S-V-Adj pattern is the most straightforward way to state “The hotel room is clean and quiet.”

Could you place the adjectives before the noun to say “a clean and quiet hotel room”?

Yes. As attributive adjectives, you would say siisti ja hiljainen hotellihuone. Here siisti and hiljainen still appear in the nominative singular to agree with hotellihuone, which remains nominative because it’s the head of the phrase.