Työnhakija odottaa vastausta.

to wait for

Breakdown of Työnhakija odottaa vastausta.

• vastaus: the answer
• työnhakija: the job seeker

Questions & Answers about Työnhakija odottaa vastausta.

Why is vastausta used instead of vastaus?

Vastausta is the partitive singular form of vastaus (“answer”).

The verb odottaa (“to wait for”) almost always takes its object in the partitive case, not in the basic nominative form. So:

• vastaus = nominative (dictionary form)
• vastausta = partitive singular

In Finnish, many verbs govern the partitive, including verbs of:

• waiting (odottaa vastausta – to wait for an answer)
• wanting (haluan kahvia – I want coffee)
• needing (tarvitsen apua – I need help)
• lacking (minulta puuttuu rahaa – I lack money)

So it’s not optional style here: with odottaa, the correct object form is partitive: vastausta.

What case is vastausta, exactly, and how is it formed?

Vastausta is partitive singular of vastaus.

Formation:

• Base word: vastaus
• Stem: vastaus-
• Add partitive singular ending: -ta (because the word ends in a consonant and uses back vowels a/o/u)

So: vastaus → vastaus + ta → vastausta.

Function in the sentence: it’s the object of the verb odottaa.