Questions & Answers about Tämä kahvila on suosikki.
Why is there no word for a or the in Tämä kahvila on suosikki?
Finnish does not have articles like a/an or the at all. The noun kahvila simply means café, and the context tells you whether you would translate it as a café or the café in English.
In Tämä kahvila on suosikki, the demonstrative tämä (this) already makes the reference specific, so in English we naturally say This café is (a/my) favorite, not This a café is favorite. The specificity comes from tämä, not from an article.
What is the difference between Tämä kahvila on suosikki and Tämä on kahvila?
Tämä kahvila on suosikki = This café is a / my favorite.
Here tämä modifies kahvila; they form one noun phrase: this café.Tämä on kahvila = This is a café.
Here tämä is the subject by itself (this), and kahvila is the predicate noun (a café).
So:
- Tämä kahvila … = This café …
- Tämä on kahvila. = This is a café.
What exactly does tämä mean, and why is it in this form?