Bussin myöhästyminen harmittaa minua.

the bus

Breakdown of Bussin myöhästyminen harmittaa minua.

• minua: me
• myöhästyminen: the being late
• harmittaa: to annoy

Questions & Answers about Bussin myöhästyminen harmittaa minua.

What does each word in Bussin myöhästyminen harmittaa minua literally mean?

Word by word:

• bussin = of the bus (genitive singular of bussi, “bus”)
• myöhästyminen = being late / delay (a noun made from the verb myöhästyä, “to be late”)
• harmittaa = annoys / bothers / makes (someone) feel bad (3rd person singular present)
• minua = me in the partitive case (from minä, “I”)

A fairly literal overall rendering would be:

The bus’s being late annoys me.
or
The bus’s delay annoys me.

Why is it bussin (genitive) instead of bussi?

Because myöhästyminen is a noun derived from a verb, and its “subject” is put in the genitive.

Pattern:

• Verb: bussi myöhästyy = the bus is late / the bus is delayed
• Noun from the verb: bussin myöhästyminen = the bus’s being late / the bus’s delay

In Finnish, when you turn a verb into a -minen noun:

• the thing that would be the subject of the sentence normally
• often appears in genitive in front of that noun.

Examples:

• lapsi itkee → lapsen itkeminen = the child cries → the child’s crying
• koira haukkuu → koiran haukkuminen = the dog barks → the dog’s barking

So bussin myöhästyminen is the natural nominal phrase for the bus being late.

What exactly is myöhästyminen? Is it a verb or a noun?