Learn Hardcore Finnish: Hän uskaltaa tanssia, varmaan musiikki tekee hänet iloiseksi. - She/He dares to dance; probably music makes her/him happy.

Hän is gender-neutral and means “he” or “she” (just “the person” in third person singular). In spoken Finnish, people often use se (“it”) for humans too, which is colloquial: Se uskaltaa tanssia. Objects then become sen (accusative) or sitä (partitive) in colloquial speech. In standard written Finnish, stick with hän / hänet / häntä for people.

Why is tanssia used after uskaltaa? What form is it?

After uskaltaa (“to dare”), Finnish uses the 1st infinitive (the dictionary form) of the following verb: uskaltaa + [1st infinitive]. Here, tanssia is the 1st infinitive of the verb “to dance.” So Hän uskaltaa tanssia = “He/She dares to dance.” No personal ending appears on the infinitive.

Could I say uskaltaa tanssimaan instead?

No. Uskaltaa selects the 1st infinitive: uskaltaa tanssia. The -maan/-mään form (the illative of the 3rd infinitive) is used after different verbs, often of motion or beginning, like mennä tanssimaan, lähteä tanssimaan, ruveta tanssimaan.

Is tanssia here an infinitive or the partitive form of the noun tanssi?

Here it’s the verb’s 1st infinitive because it follows uskaltaa, which requires a verb. It can also be the partitive of the noun tanssi (“a dance”) in other contexts, but not in this construction.

Why is it hänet and not hänen or häntä?

Hänet is the accusative form of hän and functions as the total (completed) object: tehdä hänet iloiseksi (“make him/her happy”).

Hänen is genitive (“his/her”) and would mark possession: hänen kaverinsa.
Häntä is partitive; some verbs require it (e.g., rakastaa häntä) or it marks an ongoing/incomplete effect. With tehdä + -ksi (make X into Y), a total object is the norm, hence hänet, not häntä.

What case is iloiseksi and what does it do?

Iloiseksi is the translative case (-ksi). It expresses a change of state: “into (being) happy/cheerful.” It’s common after verbs like tulla (become), muuttua (change), nimittää (appoint), and tehdä (make). So tehdä hänet iloiseksi = “make him/her (into) happy.”

Could I say tekee hänestä iloisen instead of tekee hänet iloiseksi?

Yes, there’s an alternative pattern: tehdä jostak(usta) [nominative adjective], e.g., tekee hänestä iloisen. Both are correct.

Hänet iloiseksi (object + translative) is very common and highlights the resulting state.
Hänestä iloinen (elative + nominative) can feel a bit more “classificatory” (“makes him/her a happy person”), but in many contexts the meanings overlap.

What does varmaan mean, and how does it compare to varmasti, kai, ehkä, luultavasti?

Varmaan ≈ “probably” (and in some contexts “surely,” often with a colloquial/hedging tone).
Varmasti = “certainly/definitely/surely” (stronger, more categorical).
Luultavasti = “most likely/probably” (neutral, fairly strong).
Kai = “I suppose,” speaker’s tentative assumption.
Ehkä = “maybe/perhaps” (weaker).
In your sentence, varmaan softens it to a plausible guess: “probably the music makes him/her happy.”

Why is there just a comma between the two clauses? Isn’t that a “comma splice”?

Finnish allows a comma between two independent main clauses more freely than English does. Hän uskaltaa tanssia, varmaan musiikki tekee hänet iloiseksi is standard. You could also use a period or a dash for style. If you want an explicit causal link, you can use koska: Hän uskaltaa tanssia, koska musiikki varmaan tekee hänet iloiseksi.

What’s the conjugation of tehdä here? Why tekee and not something with d?

Tehdä is irregular: stem alternates between tee- and teh-. Present tense:

minä teen, sinä teet, hän tekee
me teemme, te teette, he tekevät
So musiikki tekee is the correct 3rd person singular present.

How does word order affect nuance in the second clause?

Finnish word order is flexible and used for emphasis. All of these are correct, with subtle differences:

Varmaan musiikki tekee hänet iloiseksi. Neutral “probably” at the start; slight emphasis that this is conjecture.
Musiikki varmaan tekee hänet iloiseksi. Focus on the subject first; “probably” attached to the predicate.
Musiikki tekee hänet varmaan iloiseksi. “Probably” scopes tightly over the result.
The core meaning stays “music probably makes him/her happy.”

How would I negate uskaltaa?

Use the negative auxiliary + the main verb without the personal ending: Hän ei uskalla tanssia = “He/She doesn’t dare to dance.” In questions: Uskaltaako hän tanssia? = “Does he/she dare to dance?”

Any pronunciation tips for some tricky words here (tanssia, musiikki, iloiseksi)?

Double letters are long. Keep them clearly long.
tanssia: syllabify as tans-si-a; both ss and i length matter.
musiikki: mu-siik-ki; both ii and kk are long.
iloiseksi: i-loi-sek-si; the diphthong oi stays as one glide.
hänet: ä is front vowel, like “a” in “cat” but longer/cleaner; stress always on the first syllable in Finnish.