Minä paistan sipulia paistinpannulla.

I fry onion in the frying pan.

Breakdown of Minä paistan sipulia paistinpannulla.

• minä: I
• -lla: on
• paistaa: to fry
• paistinpannu: the frying pan
• sipuli: the onion

Questions & Answers about Minä paistan sipulia paistinpannulla.

Why is it sipulia (partitive) and not something like sipulin or sipulit?

Because the amount is indefinite and the action is not necessarily viewed as completed. In Finnish, an object is in the partitive when you’re dealing with an unspecified quantity or an ongoing activity. Here it corresponds to English “some onion.”

Alternatives and what they imply:

• Paistan sipulin. I’ll fry the (whole) onion / that onion (a specific, total object).
• Paistan sipulit. I’ll fry the onions (a known, complete set).
• Paistan sipuleita. I’m frying some onions (plural, indefinite). Note: Plain nominative sipuli isn’t used as the object here; you’d see it e.g. in an imperative: Paista sipuli!

Why is it paistinpannulla (with -lla) instead of paistinpannussa (with -ssa)?

Finnish uses the adessive -lla/-llä (“on/at”) for cooking surfaces like pans and grills. So you fry “on the pan” in Finnish, even though English says “in the pan.”

• Natural: paistinpannulla = on a frying pan.
• Less idiomatic here: paistinpannussa (inessive “in”)—we don’t usually say that for pans.
• Compare: kattilassa = in a pot; uunissa = in the oven; grillillä = on the grill.

Does paistaa mean “to fry” or “to shine”? Is that ambiguous?

It can mean both, but context removes the ambiguity. With a food object (like sipulia), paistaa means “to fry/roast.” With the sun as subject, it means “to shine”: Aurinko paistaa. For baking pastries/bread, Finnish commonly uses leipoa, while paistaa can mean “roast/bake” in the oven: Paistan kanaa uunissa.

Do I need the pronoun Minä? Can I drop it?

You can drop it. The verb ending already shows the person:

• Paistan sipulia paistinpannulla. (neutral) Including Minä adds emphasis or contrast:
• Minä paistan…, not someone else. In casual speech, people often say Mä paistan…

What tense/aspect is paistan? Is it “I fry” or “I am frying” or “I will fry”?

Finnish has one present tense that covers all of those. Paistan can mean:

• I am frying (right now),
• I fry (habitually),
• I will fry (future), if context implies future (e.g., “tonight”).

How is paistaa conjugated? What about the past and the negative?

It’s a Type 1 verb (stem: paista-).

• Present: paistan, paistat, paistaa, paistamme, paistatte, paistavat
• Past (preterite): paistoin, paistoit, paistoi, paistoimme, paistoitte, paistoivat
• Negative present: en/et/ei/emme/ette/eivät paista
• Negative past: en/et/ei/emme/ette/eivät paistanut (plural: -neet)

Could I just say pannulla instead of paistinpannulla?

Yes. Pannu is “pan,” and paistinpannu is “frying pan.” Both are common. So:

• Paistan sipulia pannulla.
• Paistan sipulia paistinpannulla. The latter is a bit more specific.

How do I say “onto the pan” vs. “on the pan”?

Use the illative -lle for movement onto, and the adessive -lla for location on:

• Onto: pannulle (e.g., Laitan sipulia pannulle. I put onion onto the pan.)
• On: pannulla (e.g., Paistan sipulia pannulla. I fry onion on the pan.) For movement off the pan, use the ablative -lta: pannulta.

How do I make the sentence negative?

Use the negative verb with the main verb in its base form, and keep the object in the partitive:

• En paista sipulia paistinpannulla. (I’m not frying any onion in a pan.) Person forms: en, et, ei, emme, ette, eivät
  • paista.

How flexible is the word order? Can I front something for emphasis?

Word order is flexible and used for information structure. Neutral is:

• Minä paistan sipulia paistinpannulla. To emphasize the location:
• Paistinpannulla paistan sipulia. To emphasize what you’re frying:
• Sipulia minä paistan (paistinpannulla). The verb’s person ending still shows who’s doing the action.

Why is it -lla and not -llä in paistinpannulla?

Vowel harmony. The case ending matches the last vowel group of the word. Paistinpannu ends with the back vowel u, so you use -lla. With front vowels you’d use -llä (e.g., pöydällä “on the table”).

What’s the difference between paistaa and paistua?

Paistaa is transitive: someone fries something.

• Minä paistan sipulia. Paistua is intransitive: something gets fried/cooks by itself (no agent mentioned).
• Sipuli paistuu pannulla. (The onion is frying/cooking on the pan.)