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Questions & Answers about Nykyinen koti on siisti.
What are the parts of speech of each word in Nykyinen koti on siisti?
- Nykyinen: adjective (“current”)
- koti: noun (“home/house”)
- on: verb, 3rd-person singular of olla (“to be”)
- siisti: adjective (“tidy/neat”) used predicatively
What does nykyinen mean, and how does it work grammatically?
Nykyinen means “current” or “present.” It’s a descriptive adjective formed with the suffix –inen. Adjectives in Finnish agree in case and number with the noun they modify. Here nykyinen is in nominative singular to match koti.
Why is koti in the nominative case?
In Finnish, the subject of a simple declarative sentence appears in the nominative case. Since koti (“home”) is the subject of “is tidy,” it stays in the nominative singular.
Why are there no articles like “the” or “a” in this sentence?
Finnish does not have separate words for definite or indefinite articles. Context and word order convey whether something is “a” or “the.”
What does on mean, and how is it used here?
On is the 3rd-person singular form of the verb olla (“to be”). It links the subject (koti) to its descriptor (siisti).
What nuance does siisti carry here? How is it different from puhdas?
Siisti means “tidy,” “neat,” or “orderly.” Puhdas means “clean” in the sense of “free of dirt.” If you say koti on puhdas, you emphasize cleanliness rather than tidiness.
Why is siisti not inflected (i.e. why no ending)?
After olla, predicate adjectives stand in the nominative singular when the subject is nominative singular. There’s no additional ending to show case or number.
How would you turn this into a question: “Is the current house tidy?”
Attach the question particle -ko to the verb and invert word order slightly:
Onko nykyinen koti siisti?
How do you say “My current house is tidy”?
You can either use a possessive suffix or a personal pronoun:
- Nykyinen kotini on siisti. (with possessive suffix -ni)
- Minun nykyinen koti on siisti. (with minun)
How is Nykyinen koti on siisti pronounced?
Approximate phonetics:
[ˈnykyinen ˈkoti on ˈsiːsti]
Primary stress always falls on the first syllable of each word in Finnish.