Breakdown of Kun ukkonen alkaa, sammutan tietokoneen ja irrotan johdon.
Questions & Answers about Kun ukkonen alkaa, sammutan tietokoneen ja irrotan johdon.
Kun introduces a time clause and usually means when (in the sense of whenever / at the time that).
- Kun ukkonen alkaa... = When the thunder (storm) starts... (a time: whenever this happens)
- Jos ukkonen alkaa... would sound like If the thunder (storm) starts..., expressing a condition or uncertainty.
In this context, the speaker assumes that thunderstorms sometimes do happen, and this is their regular reaction to that situation, so kun is the natural choice.
Finnish very often uses the present tense to talk about future events, especially in subordinate time clauses with kun.
- Kun ukkonen alkaa, sammutan tietokoneen...
Literally: When the thunder starts, I turn off the computer...
Natural English: When a thunderstorm starts, I’ll turn off the computer... / When it starts to thunder, I turn off the computer...
You do not normally say kun ukkonen alkaa tulevaisuudessa or use a special future tense, because Finnish simply does not have a grammatical future tense. Context (and sometimes adverbs like huomenna, ensi viikolla) carries the future meaning.
Yes, both are correct:
- Kun ukkonen alkaa, sammutan tietokoneen ja irrotan johdon.
- Sammutan tietokoneen ja irrotan johdon, kun ukkonen alkaa.
The meaning is the same: When there is thunder / when a thunderstorm starts, I turn off the computer and unplug the cable.
Putting the kun-clause first (as in the original) emphasizes the condition/time frame (the thunderstorm). Putting it at the end can feel more like an afterthought or simple background information. Both are natural.
In Finnish punctuation, a subordinate clause is usually separated from the main clause with a comma.
- Kun ukkonen alkaa, → subordinate (time) clause
- sammutan tietokoneen ja irrotan johdon. → main clause
Rule of thumb:
- If the subordinate clause comes first: comma before the main clause.
- Kun sataa, pysyn kotona.
- If the subordinate clause comes after the main clause, there is still usually a comma:
- Pysyn kotona, kun sataa.
So the comma is grammatical, not optional stylistic punctuation.
Ukkonen is a bit broader than English thunder:
- ukkonen
- literally: thunder / thunderstorm
- often used for a thunderstorm, but also refers to the phenomenon of thunder itself.
- ukkosmyrsky
- literally: thunderstorm (more clearly a storm with thunder and lightning)
- slightly more formal or more specific; ukkonen is more common in everyday speech.
- ukkostaa (verb)
- means there is thunder / it’s thundering / there’s a thunderstorm.
- Example: Kun ukkostaa, sammutan tietokoneen. = When it’s thundering, I turn off the computer.
In Kun ukkonen alkaa, you can understand it naturally as When the thunderstorm starts.
The -n ending here marks the total object (often called the genitive / accusative form of a noun).
- tietokone → tietokoneen
- johto → johdon
We use this form when:
- The action is completed / affects the whole object:
- Sammutan tietokoneen. = I turn the computer off (completely).
- Irrotan johdon. = I unplug the cable (fully remove it).
- The verb is in an affirmative sentence and the object is singular and countable.
If you:
- were doing the action only partially or
- were saying it in the negative,
you would usually see the partitive instead:
- En sammuta tietokonetta. = I won’t turn off the computer.
- En irrota johtoa. = I won’t unplug the cable.
So tietokoneen and johdon show that these are complete, definite actions.
In Finnish, personal pronouns like minä (I), sinä (you), etc., are often dropped, because the verb ending already shows the person.
- sammut‑an → -n ending = first person singular → I turn off
- irrota‑n → -n ending = first person singular → I unplug
So:
- (Minä) sammutan tietokoneen.
- (Minä) irrotan johdon.
Both versions are grammatically correct, but without minä is more neutral and typical in Finnish, unless you want to emphasize I specially:
- Minä sammutan tietokoneen, en sinä. = I will turn off the computer, not you.
All of these can translate as turn off / shut down, but they have different typical uses:
- sammuttaa
- literally: to extinguish (a light, a fire, a device)
- very common for lights and electronic devices
- sammutan tietokoneen = I shut down the computer.
- sulkea
- literally: to close
- used for doors, windows, lids, also for closing apps, programs, or connections
- suljen oven = I close the door.
- suljen ohjelman = I close the program.
- laittaa pois päältä
- literally: to put into the off position
- colloquial / descriptive way to say switch off
- laitan tietokoneen pois päältä sounds okay but is less idiomatic than sammutan tietokoneen.
So in this sentence, sammutan tietokoneen is the most natural verb choice.
Irrottaa literally means to detach / disconnect / unplug.
- irrotan johdon = I unplug the cable / I disconnect the cord.
In many contexts, it’s obvious you mean the power outlet or device, so you don’t have to say it:
- Kun ukkonen alkaa, ... irrotan johdon.
→ It’s understood as I unplug the power cable (from the wall / from the computer).
You can be more explicit:
- irrotan johdon seinästä = I unplug the cable from the wall.
- irrotan virtajohdon tietokoneesta = I unplug the power cable from the computer.
The shorter irrotan johdon is perfectly natural when the context is clear.
To negate in Finnish, you use the negative verb en (for minä) plus the short form of the main verb, and usually the partitive for the object.
Original (affirmative):
- Kun ukkonen alkaa, sammutan tietokoneen ja irrotan johdon.
Negative version:
- Kun ukkonen alkaa, en sammuta tietokonetta enkä irrota johtoa.
- en sammuta = I do not turn off
- tietokonetta (partitive)
- enkä = and not / nor
- irrota (short form)
- johtoa (partitive)
This means: When there is thunder / when a thunderstorm starts, I don’t turn off the computer and I don’t unplug the cable.