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Questions & Answers about Tänään menen saunaan.
What is the function of Tänään and what does it mean in English?
Tänään means today and it functions as an adverb of time, telling you when the action takes place.
Why is Tänään capitalized here?
Only the first word of a Finnish sentence is capitalized. In Finnish, ordinary words (even days and months) aren’t capitalized unless they begin the sentence.
Why are there no articles like “the” or “a” in this sentence?
Finnish has no definite or indefinite articles. Nouns stand alone without a separate word for “a” or “the.” Context and case endings clarify the meaning instead.
Why isn’t there a preposition “to” before saunaan?
Finnish expresses “to/into” a place with a case ending rather than a separate preposition. Saunaan is the illative case of sauna, indicating movement into the sauna.
What case is saunaan and how is it formed from sauna?
Saunaan is the illative singular. For most Finnish words ending in -a or -ä, you double the final vowel and add -n:
sauna → saunaan
This means “into/to the sauna.”
How is the verb mennä conjugated here, and why “menen”?
Mennä is the infinitive “to go.” The 1st person singular present form is menen (“I go” or “I am going”). The full paradigm is:
1 sg. menen
2 sg. menet
3 sg. menee
… etc.
Is the word order fixed in this sentence?
No. Finnish word order is fairly flexible. You could say:
“Tänään menen saunaan.”
“Menen tänään saunaan.”
“Menen saunaan tänään.”
All mean the same, with slight shifts in emphasis.
Could you include “minä” (I) at the start, like “Minä menen saunaan tänään”?
Yes. Adding minä is grammatically correct but optional, because the verb ending -n on menen already signals 1st person singular. Including minä just adds extra emphasis on the subject.