Haluan tulla opettajaksi.

I want to become a teacher.

Breakdown of Haluan tulla opettajaksi.

• minä: I
• haluta: to want
• tulla: to become
• opettaja: the teacher

Questions & Answers about Haluan tulla opettajaksi.

Why does tulla (which I learned as “to come”) mean “to become” in this sentence?

In Finnish, tulla can mean both:

1. to come (to a place) – e.g. Tulen kotiin. = I’m coming home.
2. to become / to turn into – especially with the translative case (-ksi).

When you say tulla + [noun/adjective in -ksi], it usually means to become X:

• Haluan tulla opettajaksi. = I want to become a teacher.
• Hänestä tuli kuuluisa. = He/She became famous.

So here, tulla is naturally understood as to become because it’s followed by opettajaksi in the translative case.

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Why is it opettajaksi and not the basic form opettaja?