Breakdown of Tunnin alussa teemme lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen yhdessä.
Questions & Answers about Tunnin alussa teemme lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen yhdessä.
The basic word is tunti = hour / lesson (in a school context, very often lesson, class).
Tunnin is the singular genitive form of tunti:
- tunti → tunnin (genitive: of the lesson / of the hour)
In time expressions, Finnish often uses this genitive + another noun:
- tunnin alussa = at the beginning of the lesson
- päivän lopussa = at the end of the day
So tunnin alussa literally means in the beginning of the lesson.
The base noun is alku = beginning, start.
To say in the beginning, Finnish uses the inessive case: alku → alussa (in the beginning).
The ending -ssa / -ssä usually means in, inside.
So:
- alku = beginning
- alussa = in the beginning
- tunnin alussa = in the beginning of the lesson → at the beginning of the lesson.
Yes, both are possible, but the nuance is slightly different:
tunnin alussa
- literally in the beginning of the lesson
- focuses on the time period (the time slot at the start of the class)
tunnin aluksi
- uses the translative case (-ksi), often meaning (as) the first thing in the lesson / to start the lesson
- focuses on the role of the activity: something we do as the opening activity
In practice, in a classroom context, both can usually be translated as At the beginning of the lesson we (will) do..., and both are natural.
Finnish usually does not need subject pronouns, because the person and number are shown in the verb ending:
- tehdä = to do, to make
- teemme = we do / we will do
The -mme ending already tells you the subject is we, so me is optional:
- (Me) teemme lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen.
You would normally include me only for emphasis or contrast:
- Me teemme, emme opiskelijat. = We will do it, not the students.
Finnish usually uses the present tense also for planned or scheduled future actions, especially when the time is clear from context:
- Huomenna menen Helsinkiin. = Tomorrow I go / will go to Helsinki.
- Tunnin alussa teemme... = At the beginning of the lesson we do / will do...
There is no separate will-form like in English. The time expression (tunnin alussa) tells you that this action happens in the (near) future, so the simple present covers that meaning.
The base forms (nominative singular) are:
- lyhyt = short
- ääntämisharjoitus = pronunciation exercise
In the sentence they appear as:
- lyhyen = genitive / total object form of lyhyt, agreeing with the noun it modifies
- ääntämisharjoituksen = genitive / total object form of ääntämisharjoitus
Together:
- lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen = a short pronunciation exercise (as the object of the verb teemme).
Because here ääntämisharjoitus is the object of the verb teemme (we do), and Finnish marks objects with special cases.
For a complete, bounded action (we do one whole exercise), the object is in the genitive form, often called the total object:
- base forms: lyhyt ääntämisharjoitus
- as total object: lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen
Key points:
- The noun ääntämisharjoitus takes genitive: ääntämisharjoituksen.
- The adjective lyhyt must agree in case with the noun: lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen.
You would use lyhyt ääntämisharjoitus (nominative) in other roles, for example:
- Tässä on lyhyt ääntämisharjoitus. = Here is a short pronunciation exercise.
- Lyhyt ääntämisharjoitus on helppo. = The short pronunciation exercise is easy.
Yes, ääntämisharjoitus is a compound:
- ääntäminen = pronunciation (the act of pronouncing)
- stem used in compounds: ääntämis-
- harjoitus = exercise, practice
Combine: ääntämis + harjoitus → ääntämisharjoitus
→ literally something like pronunciation-exercise.
In the sentence we see the object form:
- base: ääntämisharjoitus
- genitive / total object: ääntämisharjoituksen
Learners often find it easiest just to learn ääntämisharjoitus as a single word meaning pronunciation exercise.
Finnish does not have articles like a / an / the at all.
Definiteness and specificity are understood from:
- context
- word order
- whether something is already known in the conversation
So lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen can mean:
- a short pronunciation exercise (introducing a new exercise)
- the short pronunciation exercise (if both speaker and listener already know which one)
In this sentence, in a typical teaching context, English would most naturally say a short pronunciation exercise.
Yhdessä is an adverb meaning together; it describes how something is done:
- Teemme sen yhdessä. = We do it together.
Kanssa is more like a postposition meaning with (someone):
- Teen sen opettajan kanssa. = I do it with the teacher.
Comparison:
Teemme lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen yhdessä.
- Focus: we do the exercise jointly, as a group.
Teen lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen opettajan kanssa.
- Focus: I do the exercise with the teacher (the teacher is my partner).
You can sometimes combine them:
- Teemme sen yhdessä opettajan kanssa. = We do it together with the teacher.
Yes, Finnish word order is quite flexible. All of these are grammatically fine:
- Tunnin alussa teemme lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen yhdessä.
- Teemme tunnin alussa lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen yhdessä.
- Tunnin alussa me teemme yhdessä lyhyen ääntämisharjoituksen.
Typical tendencies:
- Putting tunnin alussa at the beginning highlights the time frame.
- Keeping yhdessä near the end often sounds natural, because adverbs of manner/time often come later in the clause.
The original sentence is quite natural and neutral-sounding. Changing the order slightly may change what is emphasized, but the basic meaning stays the same.
Literally, tunti means hour.
However, in school and course contexts, tunti very often means a lesson / a class session:
- Ensi tunnilla = in the next lesson / next class
- Tunnin alussa = at the beginning of the lesson
So in this sentence, tunnin alussa is naturally understood as at the beginning of the lesson (class), not at the beginning of the hour in a purely clock-time sense.