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Questions & Answers about Matka kestää kauemmin.
What does each word do in this sentence?
- Matka: subject in the nominative singular (journey/trip).
- kestää: 3rd person singular present of kestää (to last; to take time).
- kauemmin: comparative adverb meaning “for a longer time,” from kauan (for a long time).
Why is the present tense used if we’re talking about a future trip?
Finnish commonly uses the present to talk about scheduled or expected future events. Context supplies the future meaning. So Matka kestää kauemmin can refer to a trip that will take longer.
Does kestää need an object? How is it used with time?
- When it means “to last/take (time),” kestää is intransitive. You can add a duration phrase: Matka kestää kaksi tuntia.
- It can also be transitive meaning “to endure/withstand”: En kestä melua (I can’t stand noise). Here the object is in the partitive because it’s an ongoing/indefinite quantity.
Could I say Matka on pidempi instead?
- Matka on pidempi = the trip is longer in distance/length.
- Matka kestää kauemmin = the trip takes longer in time. They’re related but not the same.
What’s the difference between kauemmin, pidempään/pitempään, and kauemman aikaa?
- kauemmin: comparative adverb of time from kauan; standalone and very common.
- pidempään/pitempään: comparative adverb from pitkään; both forms are standard (today pidempään is more common). Synonymous with kauemmin in time contexts.
- kauemman aikaa: literally “a longer time,” a bit more explicit/emphatic. All three are fine in many contexts.
Why is it spelled kauemmin (with e and double m), not something like kauammin?
It’s an irregular comparative pattern:
- kauan → kauemmin (comparative), kauimmin (superlative). The vowel shifts (a → e/i) and the consonant geminates: mm. So write kauemmin, not kauammin or kauemmiin.
Is kauemmin about time or distance? How do I talk about distance instead?
kauemmin is about time only. For distance, use:
- kauemmas (to farther away)
- kauempana (farther away, location)
- kauempaa (from farther away) Don’t mix kauemmin (time) with kauemmas/kauempana/kauempaa (distance).
Can I change the word order?
Yes, to shift emphasis.
- Neutral: Matka kestää kauemmin.
- Emphasis on “longer”: Kauemmin matka kestää.
- Also possible: Kauemmin kestää matka. Placing kauemmin first highlights the comparison. Matka kauemmin kestää is uncommon.
How do I make it negative?
- General: Matka ei kestä kauaa/kauan. (Both kauaa and kauan are accepted; kauaa is especially common after negation.)
- With a point of comparison: Matka ei kestä kauemmin kuin ennen.
How do I ask related questions like “How long does it take?” or “How much longer?”
- How long: Kuinka kauan matka kestää? / Kauanko matka kestää?
- How much longer: Kuinka paljon kauemmin (vielä) matka kestää? or Kuinka paljon pidempään (vielä) se kestää?
Can I drop the subject Matka?
Yes, if it’s clear from context:
- Se kestää kauemmin.
- Kestää kauemmin. (impersonal feel; context supplies what “it” is)
What are useful tense/mood variants with this sentence?
- Past: Matka kesti kauemmin.
- Perfect: Matka on kestänyt kauemmin.
- Conditional: Matka kestäisi kauemmin. These are built with the same comparative adverb kauemmin.
How do I explicitly add a duration?
Add a time expression after kestää:
- Matka kestää kaksi tuntia. (numerals >1 require partitive singular: tuntia)
- Matka kestää puoli tuntia.
- Combine comparison and duration with context: Nyt matka kestää kaksi ja puoli tuntia, but keep kauemmin for the comparative idea: Nyt matka kestää kauemmin kuin ennen.
Could I use other verbs like viedä or mennä?
- Matka vie kauemmin (aikaa). = The trip takes more time. Natural, especially with aikaa explicit.
- Impersonal pattern: Siinä menee kauemmin. / Matkaan menee kauemmin. Avoid Matka ottaa kauemmin for “take longer”; ottaa isn’t used that way in standard Finnish.
Any pronunciation tips for this sentence?
- Primary stress on the first syllable of each word: MAT-ka KES-tää KAU-em-min.
- ää in kestää is a long vowel; hold it.
- mm in kauemmin is a long consonant; make it clearly double.
- Distinguish a vs ä: Matka (back vowel), kestää (front vowel). Vowel harmony prevents mixing front and back vowels within a word.