Learn Hardcore Finnish: Minä pudotan kupin lattialle.

pudota = to fall (intransitive: nothing is directly acted on)
- Pallo putoaa. = The ball falls.
pudottaa = to drop (something) (transitive: you act on an object)
- Minä pudotan kupin. = I drop the cup.

In the sentence Minä pudotan kupin lattialle, the verb is pudotan, which is:

person: 1st person singular
tense: present
verb: pudottaa (transitive)
form: pudotan = I drop (something)

You use pudotan because you are causing the cup to fall.
If you said Minä putoan lattialle, that would mean I fall onto the floor (you yourself are falling), not I drop the cup.

Why do we say Minä pudotan and not just Pudotan? Is minä necessary?

The pronoun minä (I) is not grammatically necessary here.

Minä pudotan kupin lattialle.
Pudotan kupin lattialle.

Both are correct and mean the same in basic context.

Finnish verb endings already show the subject:

pudotan = I drop
pudotat = you drop
pudottaa = he/she drops

You typically add minä only when:

you want to emphasize I (not someone else):
- Minä pudotan kupin, en sinä. = I’m the one who drops the cup, not you.
you’re contrasting subjects:
- Minä pudotan kupin, sinä nostat sen. = I drop the cup, you lift it up.

In neutral, everyday Finnish, leaving out minä (Pudotan kupin lattialle) is very normal.

Why is it kupin and not kuppi?

The base form is:

kuppi = cup (nominative)

In the sentence, kuppi is a total object (you drop the whole cup, one complete event), so it takes the genitive/accusative form:

kupin

This -n ending on a singular object often signals a complete, bounded action:

Minä juon kahvin. = I drink (up) the coffee. (all of it)
Minä luen kirjan. = I read (finish) the book.

So:

Minä pudotan kupin. = I drop the (whole) cup (once, as a complete action).

Using kuppi (nominative) here would be ungrammatical in standard Finnish with this verb form and meaning.

Could it be kuppia instead of kupin? What would that mean?

Yes, kuppia is also a possible form, but the meaning changes slightly because kuppia is partitive.

Compare:

Minä pudotan kupin lattialle.
- Complete, single, bounded event: I drop the cup (once, the whole thing) onto the floor.
Minä pudotan kuppia lattialle.
- Partitive: can imply an ongoing, repeated, or not-whole event, or be more vague.
- Possible readings:
  - I’m (in the process of) dropping a cup onto the floor.
  - I keep dropping cups onto the floor. (habitual / repeated)
  - I’m dropping (some cup) onto the floor. (less definite)

In many everyday contexts, speakers will still tend to use kupin for a single, definite cup dropped as a completed event. Kuppia sounds more like focusing on the activity of dropping rather than on one completed drop of that particular cup.

What does the ending -lle in lattialle mean?

Lattia = floor (base form)
lattialle = onto the floor (direction: to the surface)

The ending -lle is the allative case, which often means:

onto a surface
to / towards something (especially onto its outer surface)

So:

Minä pudotan kupin lattialle.
= I drop the cup onto the floor.

You can remember -lle with things like:

pöydälle = onto the table
tuolille = onto the chair
maalle = onto the ground / to the countryside (depending on context)

What is the difference between lattialle, lattialla, lattialta, and lattiaan?

All are forms of lattia (floor), but different cases:

lattialla (adessive) = on the floor (state/location)
- Kuppi on lattialla. = The cup is on the floor.
lattialta (ablative) = from (off) the floor (movement away)
- Nostan kupin lattialta. = I lift/pick the cup up from the floor.
lattialle (allative) = onto the floor (movement onto a surface)
- Pudotan kupin lattialle. = I drop the cup onto the floor.
lattiaan (illative) = into the floor (into the inside / penetrating the surface)
- Naula menee lattiaan. = The nail goes into the floor.

In your sentence, lattialle is correct because the cup is moving onto the floor’s surface.

Could I say Minä pudotan kupin lattialla? What would that mean?

Minä pudotan kupin lattialla is grammatically possible but means something different:

lattialla = on the floor (location, not direction)

So Minä pudotan kupin lattialla would suggest something like:

I drop the cup while on the floor (the action happens in a place that is on the floor), or
I drop the cup on the floor (as a location), but this is odd/unclear Finnish for “onto the floor”.

For the usual meaning I drop the cup onto the floor, you should use lattialle (direction onto):

Minä pudotan kupin lattialle. ✅

How flexible is the word order in Minä pudotan kupin lattialle?

Finnish word order is relatively flexible because grammar is marked by endings, not by position. All of these are possible:

Minä pudotan kupin lattialle. (neutral, clear)
Pudotan kupin lattialle. (neutral, without minä)
Kupin pudotan lattialle. (emphasis on kupin: It’s the cup that I drop onto the floor.)
Lattialle pudotan kupin. (emphasis on the destination: It’s onto the floor that I drop the cup.)

The basic neutral order for such a sentence is:

[Subject] – [Verb] – [Object] – [Place]
→ (Minä) pudotan kupin lattialle.

Does pudotan mean I am dropping or I drop or I will drop?

Finnish present tense covers several English uses:

pudotan can mean:
- I drop (habitually, generally):
  - Aina kun olen väsynyt, pudotan kupin lattialle.
    = Whenever I’m tired, I drop the cup onto the floor.
- I am dropping (right now):
  - Nyt pudotan kupin lattialle.
    = Now I am dropping the cup onto the floor.
- I will drop (future), depending on context:
  - Kohta pudotan kupin lattialle.
    = Soon I will drop the cup onto the floor.

Finnish does not have a separate continuous tense like am dropping. Context and adverbs (like nyt, kohta, aina) clarify the time and aspect.

How do I say “I dropped the cup onto the floor” in Finnish?

Use the past tense of pudottaa:

Minä pudotin kupin lattialle.
= I dropped the cup onto the floor.

Breakdown:

pudotin = past tense, 1st person singular of pudottaa
kupin = total object (genitive/accusative)
lattialle = onto the floor

You can drop minä in normal speech:

Pudotin kupin lattialle.

How do I say “I don’t drop the cup onto the floor”? Does the case of kuppi change?

Yes, in negative sentences, a normally total object often becomes partitive.

The sentence:

En pudota kuppia lattialle.
= I don’t drop the cup onto the floor.

Details:

en = negative verb, 1st person singular
pudota = basic (connegative) form of pudottaa used with negation
kuppia = partitive singular of kuppi
lattialle = onto the floor

So:

Affirmative: Pudotan kupin lattialle. (total object: kupin)
Negative: En pudota kuppia lattialle. (partitive object: kuppia)

What is the difference between pudotan kupin lattialle and tiputan kupin lattialle?

Both are understandable and often similar in everyday speech:

pudottaa = to drop (neutral, standard)
tiputtaa = to drop, let fall, drip (also “to make something drip”)

In many contexts:

Minä pudotan kupin lattialle.
Minä tiputan kupin lattialle.

are functionally close: I drop the cup onto the floor.

Nuances:

pudottaa is often a bit more standard/neutral.
tiputtaa can have slightly more of a feel of letting something fall, or is used in contexts like:
- Tiputan lääkettä silmään. = I drop medicine into my eye.
- Vesi tiputtaa katosta. = Water is dripping from the ceiling.

But for a cup and a floor, both verbs are commonly heard; pudottaa is the safe, textbook choice.

How do I say “The cup falls onto the floor” (without me causing it)?

Then you use the intransitive verb pudota (to fall by itself):

Kuppi putoaa lattialle.
= The cup falls onto the floor.

Compare:

Minä pudotan kupin lattialle.
= I drop the cup onto the floor. (I cause it)
Kuppi putoaa lattialle.
= The cup falls onto the floor. (it falls, no explicit agent)

This contrast (transitive pudottaa vs. intransitive pudota) is very common in Finnish verb pairs.