Minä soitan kitaraa kotona.

I play the guitar at home.

Breakdown of Minä soitan kitaraa kotona.

• minä: I
• kotona: at home
• kitara: the guitar
• soittaa: to play

Questions & Answers about Minä soitan kitaraa kotona.

Can I omit Minä here?

Yes. It’s completely natural to say Soitan kitaraa kotona. The -n ending on soitan already marks the subject as I. Use Minä mainly for emphasis or contrast. In spoken Finnish you’ll also hear Mä soitan kitaraa kotona.

What verb is soitan, and how do I conjugate it?

It’s the 1st person singular present of soittaa (to play an instrument; to call on the phone). Don’t confuse it with soida (to ring/sound), which is intransitive.

• minä: soitan
• sinä: soitat
• hän/se: soittaa
• me: soitamme
• te: soitatte
• he: soittavat

Why is it kitaraa and not kitara or kitaran?

Because soittaa + instrument takes the partitive case by default: soittaa kitaraa, soittaa pianoa, soittaa viulua. The partitive signals an ongoing, open-ended activity rather than a completed, countable result. Using kitaran would suggest a bounded, total object, which doesn’t fit the meaning of simply playing an instrument. The nominative kitara is not used as a direct object here. For inherently plural instruments you’ll see the plural partitive: soittaa rumpuja (play the drums).

What does kotona mean exactly, and why not kotissa?

Kotona means at home. The noun koti has special, irregular locative forms:

• kotona = at home
• kotiin = to home
• kotoa = from home You don’t say kotissa. Just memorize these three as a set.

Does this mean “I play the guitar” or “I am playing the guitar”?

Both are possible. Finnish present tense covers both simple present and present progressive. Add adverbs to clarify:

• Habit: Yleensä soitan kitaraa kotona. (I usually play guitar at home.)
• Right now: Nyt soitan kitaraa kotona. (I’m playing guitar at home now.)

Can I change the word order?

Yes. Word order is flexible and used for emphasis/focus.

• Neutral without emphasis: Soitan kitaraa kotona.
• Emphasizing place: Kotona soitan kitaraa. (It’s at home that I play.)
• Emphasizing what is played: Kitaraa soitan kotona. (What I play at home is guitar.) If you keep Minä, it normally stays first: Minä soitan kitaraa kotona.

Does soittaa also mean “to call”? How do I tell the difference?

Yes. Context and case marking tell you:

• Play an instrument: Soitan kitaraa.
• Call someone (allative -lle): Soitan sinulle/Pekalle. (I’ll call you/Pekka.)
• Call using a phone (tool): Soitan puhelimella. (I’ll make a call with a phone.)
• Play a song/piece: Soitan kappaleen. (I’ll play a piece/song.)

Why not use pelata for “play”?

Use pelata for games and sports: pelata jalkapalloa, pelata shakkia. For musical instruments, use soittaa: soittaa kitaraa, soittaa pianoa.

How do I say “I don’t play the guitar at home”?

En soita kitaraa kotona. Finnish negation uses a separate negative verb (en, et, ei, emme, ette, eivät) and the main verb in a special form (soita here).

How do I ask “Do you play the guitar at home?”

Attach the question particle -ko/-kö to the verb: Soitatko (sinä) kitaraa kotona? You can include sinä for emphasis, but it’s not required.

Does kotona mean at my home by default? How do I specify whose home?

Often, with a clear subject, kotona is understood as one’s own home. To be explicit:

• At my home: kotonani (standard) or, in everyday speech, mun kotona
• At your home: kotonasi / sun kotona
• At his/her home: kotonaan
• At X’s home: Juhanin kotona, ystäväni kotona

Can I use kitaralla to mean “with a guitar”?

Yes, when the guitar is the tool for performing another bounded action, use the adessive (-lla/-llä):

• Soitan kappaleen kitaralla. (I’ll play a piece on the guitar.) But for the general activity “play guitar,” Finnish uses the partitive object: soittaa kitaraa.

How would I mention a song/piece instead of just the instrument?

Use a total object for a bounded performance:

• Soitan kappaleen/laulun/biisin kotona. (I’ll play a piece/song at home.) For an open-ended amount, use the partitive plural:
• Soitan kappaleita kotona. (I play songs at home.)

Any quick pronunciation tips for this sentence?

• Primary stress is on the first syllable of each word: MInä SOI-tan KI-ta-raa KO-to-na.
• oi in soitan is a true diphthong; glide it smoothly.
• The double aa in kitaraa is long; vowel length matters.
• r is a tapped/trilled r; t is dental (tongue against upper teeth).
• Vowel harmony explains a rather than ä throughout (kitara → kitaraa).

Is Minä soitan kitaraa kotona natural, or should I prefer something else?

It’s correct and natural. In everyday speech you’ll more often hear Soitan kitaraa kotona (dropping Minä) or colloquially Mä soitan kitaraa kotona, but including Minä is fine, just a bit more emphatic/explicit.

How do I express the future, like “I will play the guitar at home”?

Finnish uses the present tense for future time. Add a time word:

• Huomenna soitan kitaraa kotona. (I’ll play guitar at home tomorrow.)
• Illalla soitan kitaraa kotona. (I’ll play tonight.)