Siirrän pöydän sohvan ja ikkunan välille.

I move the table between the sofa and the window.

Breakdown of Siirrän pöydän sohvan ja ikkunan välille.

• minä: I
• pöytä: the table
• ja: and
• ikkuna: the window

Questions & Answers about Siirrän pöydän sohvan ja ikkunan välille.

What case is pöydän, and why is that form used here?

Pöydän is in the genitive/accusative form (ending -n) and it functions as a total object.

In Finnish, a complete, bounded object of a verb like siirtää is usually in this -n form in the singular. It corresponds to “the whole table” being affected by the action.

So:

• Siirrän pöydän … = I move the (whole) table to its destination (a complete event).
• The -n marks that the object is treated as a whole, and that the action is seen as completed or goal-oriented, not just ongoing activity.

This is why we don’t use the bare pöytä here; we want a definite, whole object, and the verb is clearly goal-directed (moving it to a specific place).

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What is the difference between pöydän and pöytää as objects of siirrän?

Both are possible, but they give a different aspectual feeling:

• Siirrän pöydän sohvan ja ikkunan välille.
  – I move the whole table to that place; the action is viewed as a single, completed event with a clear endpoint.

• Siirrän pöytää sohvan ja ikkunan väliin/välille.
  – I’m (in the process of) moving the table, without focusing on completion. This can sound like:

  • you’re just shifting it around,
  • or describing the activity itself (maybe you’ll stop partway, or you’re just adjusting its position).

So:

• pöydän (genitive/“accusative”) = , goal reached.