Onko sinulla aikaa pelata tänään?

Do you have time to play today?

Breakdown of Onko sinulla aikaa pelata tänään?

• tänään: today
• sinä: you
• aika: the time
• pelata: to play

Questions & Answers about Onko sinulla aikaa pelata tänään?

Why is it onko and not oletko?

Finnish expresses possession with the existential pattern olla + adessive (“to be at someone”). Onko sinulla ...? literally means “Is there at you ...?” so it’s the 3rd person of olla with the question clitic. Oletko means “are you,” which would be wrong for “do you have.”

What is sinulla exactly?

It’s the adessive case of sinä (“you” singular): sinä → sinulla (“at you”). This adessive is the standard way to show possession with olla. Other persons:

• minulla (at me), hänellä (at him/her), meillä (at us), teillä (at you plural/polite), heillä (at them)

Why is it aikaa and not aika?

Aikaa is the partitive singular of aika. You use partitive for an indefinite amount of time: “some time.” Aika (nominative) would refer to a specific “time/appointment.” Compare:

• Onko sinulla aikaa? “Do you have (some) time?”
• Onko sinulla aika? “Do you have an appointment/time slot?”

What form is pelata, and why not pelaa or pelaamaan?

Pelata is the basic infinitive (A-infinitive). After expressions like olla aikaa you use the infinitive: on aikaa pelata.

• Pelaa is 3rd person singular present (“he/she plays”), so it doesn’t fit here.
• Pelaamaan (-maan form) is used with movement/attempt verbs: mennä pelaamaan, tulla pelaamaan.

Does pelata cover all meanings of “play”?

No. Common distinctions:

• pelata = play games/sports (competitive or rule-based): pelata tennistä, pelata videopelejä
• leikkiä = children “play,” make-believe: lapset leikkivät
• soittaa = play an instrument: soittaa kitaraa

Can I move tänään to other places in the sentence?

Yes. Word order shifts emphasis:

• Onko sinulla aikaa pelata tänään? neutral, most common
• Onko sinulla tänään aikaa pelata? slight emphasis on “today”
• Onko tänään sinulla aikaa pelata? emphasizes “today” and “you” more strongly All are grammatical; choose based on what you want to highlight.

How do I answer briefly and naturally?

• Positive: On. / Kyllä on. / Joo, on.
• Negative: Ei ole. / Ei valitettavasti ole. You can add detail: On vähän aikaa. “I have a little time.”

How can I make the question softer or more polite?

Use the conditional or alternative verbs:

• Olisiko sinulla aikaa pelata tänään? “Would you have time…?”
• Ehtisitkö pelata tänään? “Would you have time/manage to play today?”
• Sopisiko sinulle, että pelataan tänään? “Would it suit you to play today?”

What’s the colloquial spoken version?

Very common: Onks sulla aikaa pelaa tänään?
Features: onks (= onko), sulla (= sinulla), and dropping the final -t of pelata in speech: pelaa. Typical answers: On/ei oo.

What’s the difference between Onko sinulla aikaa pelata tänään? and Ehditkö pelata tänään?

They’re close. Onko sinulla aikaa…? asks about having time available. Ehditkö…? (from ehtiä) asks whether you can manage/fit it in (often more practical/agenda-focused). Both are natural.

How do I say “to play with me” here?

Add kanssa (“with”):

• Formal: Onko sinulla aikaa pelata tänään minun kanssani?
• Neutral/spoken: Onko sinulla aikaa pelata tänään mun kanssa?
• One-word option: kanssani “with me”

If I want “Do you have the time?” (to tell the clock time), is this sentence okay?

No. For asking the clock time, say:

• Paljonko kello on? or Mitä kello on? If you mean “Do you have a watch/phone (to tell time)?”, you can ask Onko sinulla kelloa?

Why is the question clitic on on? Can it go elsewhere?

Default yes/no questions attach -ko/-kö to the finite verb: on → onko. You can attach it to another word to emphasize or clarify:

• Sinullako on aikaa…? “Oh, so you’re the one who has time…?”
• Tänäänkö…? “Today, is it?”
• Pelataanko tänään? (impersonal) “Shall we play today?”

How does this look with other persons?

• Onko minulla aikaa…? “Do I have time…?”
• Onko hänellä aikaa…? “Does he/she have time…?”
• Onko teillä aikaa…? “Do you (plural/polite) have time…?”
• Onko heillä aikaa…? “Do they have time…?”

Can I drop sinulla?

Yes, but it changes the meaning. Onko aikaa pelata tänään? asks generally “Is there time to play today?” (not directed at a specific person). With sinulla, it’s specifically “Do you have time…?”

How do I specify the game or sport?

Add a (usually partitive) object after pelata:

• Onko sinulla aikaa pelata tennistä/jalkapalloa?
• Onko sinulla aikaa pelata videopelejä/lautapelejä?

Is tänään always this form? What about “nowadays”?

Tänään always means “today” (the day of speaking). For “nowadays,” use nykyään (most common) or idiomatically tänä päivänä.

Does negation change any cases here?

You still use partitive aikaa with negation: Minulla ei ole aikaa pelata tänään. The partitive fits because the time is an indefinite non-existent quantity in a negative/existential clause.