Laitan muistilistaan, että otan henkilökortin mukaan hammaslääkärille.

I put on the checklist that I will take my ID card with me to the dentist.

Breakdown of Laitan muistilistaan, että otan henkilökortin mukaan hammaslääkärille.

• minä: I
• -lle: to
• ottaa mukaan: to take along
• että: that
• laittaa: to put
• henkilökortti: the ID card
• -an: into
• hammaslääkäri: the dentist
• muistilista: the checklist

Questions & Answers about Laitan muistilistaan, että otan henkilökortin mukaan hammaslääkärille.

What does laitan mean here, and why is it in the present tense if the meaning is future?

Laitan is the 1st person singular form of the verb laittaa, which literally means to put or to place.

• laittaa → stem: laita-
• laita-
  • -n (1st person singular ending) → laitan = I put / I’m putting

In this sentence, laitan muistilistaan is best translated as:

• I’ll put (it) on my checklist
  or
• I’ll add (it) to my to‑do list

Finnish normally uses the present tense to talk about future actions when the context makes the time clear. So:

• Laitan muistilistaan… = I will put on the checklist… (future meaning from context, not from a separate future tense)

What case is muistilistaan in, and why?

Muistilistaan is in the illative case, which typically answers “into where?” or “to where (inside)?”

• Nominative: muistilista = checklist, reminder list
• Illative (singular): muistilistaan = into the checklist / onto the checklist

Here laitan muistilistaan literally means:

• I put (it) into the checklist.

English would usually say on the checklist, but Finnish treats it as into the list (illative).

So the structure is:

• laitan (I put)
• muistilistaan (into my checklist)
• että… (that…)

What is the role of että in että otan henkilökortin mukaan hammaslääkärille?

Että is a conjunction meaning that (introducing a clause, not the demonstrative pronoun “that”).

In this sentence, että introduces a content clause that functions like the “thing” you are putting on the checklist:

• Laitan muistilistaan, että…
  = I put on my checklist that…

The whole clause että otan henkilökortin mukaan hammaslääkärille is what is being “put” onto the list. So structurally:

• Main clause: Laitan muistilistaan
• Subordinate clause: että otan henkilökortin mukaan hammaslääkärille

Finnish almost always uses a comma before että when it introduces a subordinate clause, as you see here.

Why is it otan and not something like ottan or ottaa?

Otan is the correct 1st person singular form of ottaa (to take).

Conjugation pattern:

• Dictionary form: ottaa = to take
• Stem for present: ota-
• 1st person singular ending: -n

So:

• ota-
  • -n → otan = I take / I’ll take

Using ottaa here would be the infinitive (“to take”), which cannot function as the main verb of the clause:

• että otan henkilökortin… = that I take the ID card… (correct)
• että ottaa henkilökortin… = (for) taking the ID card… (wrong here as the main clause meaning)

Why is henkilökortin in this form, and what case is it?

Henkilökortin is in the genitive / accusative singular form.

• Nominative: henkilökortti = ID card
• Genitive/accusative: henkilökortin

With a personal subject and a completed, specific object (especially in a sentence that has a “future” or “definite” feel), Finnish often uses the genitive form as the total object, which overlaps with the accusative in form.

Here:

• otan henkilökortin literally = I take the ID card (completely, as a whole, a specific one).

If it were partitive (e.g. henkilökorttia), it would suggest an incomplete or indefinite action, which doesn’t fit “I’ll take my ID card with me.”

What does mukaan mean here?

Mukaan is a postposition meaning roughly along, with, or along with (me/you/etc.).

In this structure:

• ottaa X mukaan = to take X with (oneself)

So:

• otan henkilökortin mukaan = I’ll take my ID card with me.

You can think of it as:

• ottaa mukaan = to bring along / to take along

Why is it hammaslääkärille and not hammaslääkärilleen or hammaslääkärilleä or hammaslääkärilleen luo?

Hammaslääkärille is the allative case (ending -lle), which generally means to or onto, often used with places and with people-as-destinations.

• Nominative: hammaslääkäri = dentist
• Allative: hammaslääkärille = to the dentist (to the dentist’s place / practice)

In Finnish, going to a professional person’s practice is often expressed by using -lle on the profession word:

• lääkärille = to the doctor(’s)
• hammaslääkärille = to the dentist(’s)
• kampaajalle = to the hairdresser(’s)

So:

• otan henkilökortin mukaan hammaslääkärille
  = I’ll take my ID card with me to the dentist (appointment / office).

Alternatives:

• hammaslääkärin luo also means to the dentist’s (place), but hammaslääkärille is shorter and very idiomatic.

Forms like hammaslääkärilleen would add a possessive suffix (to his/her dentist), which is a different meaning, and hammaslääkärilleä is simply incorrect because -llä/-llä cases don’t take that form.

Can I move mukaan somewhere else in the sentence, and does it change the meaning?

Yes, Finnish word order is flexible, and mukaan can move, as long as the meaning stays clear. For example:

• Otan henkilökortin mukaan hammaslääkärille.
• Otan mukaan henkilökortin hammaslääkärille.

Both mean roughly: I’ll take my ID card with me to the dentist.

Nuance:

• Otan henkilökortin mukaan hammaslääkärille.
  Slightly emphasizes the ID card first, then that it will come along.
• Otan mukaan henkilökortin hammaslääkärille.
  Starts with the idea of taking something along, then specifies what.

In practice, both are natural. You wouldn’t normally separate otan from mukaan by a large chunk of unrelated material, but small reordering like above is fine.

Why is there a comma before että? In English we might not always use one before “that”.

Finnish punctuation rules are stricter about this than English:

• When että introduces a subordinate clause, Finnish uses a comma before it.

So:

• Laitan muistilistaan, että otan…
  (comma required)

This is unlike English, where you can often write:

• I’ll put on my checklist that I’ll take my ID card…
  (with or without a comma, depending on style)

In Finnish, leaving out the comma is considered incorrect in standard writing in this kind of sentence.

Could I say this without että, like using an infinitive, for example “Laitan muistilistaan ottaa henkilökortti mukaan hammaslääkärille”?

No, that structure is not correct Finnish.

In this type of sentence, laittaa takes a content clause introduced by että, not an infinitive ottaa as a complement.

Correct:

• Laitan muistilistaan, että otan henkilökortin mukaan hammaslääkärille.

Incorrect:

• ✗ Laitan muistilistaan ottaa henkilökortti mukaan hammaslääkärille.

If you want to avoid että, you would normally change the verb:

• Merkitsen muistilistaan: “Ota henkilökortti mukaan hammaslääkärille.”
  (I’ll mark on the checklist: “Take the ID card with you to the dentist.”)

But with laitan muistilistaan, the natural pattern is että + finite clause.

Is henkilökortti specifically an “ID card”? How is it different from henkilöllisyystodistus?

Yes, henkilökortti is specifically an identity card, usually the official Finnish ID card issued by the authorities.

• henkilökortti = ID card (a type of henkilöllisyystodistus)
• henkilöllisyystodistus = identity document in general (broader term)

So:

• A passi (passport) is also a henkilöllisyystodistus, but not a henkilökortti.
• In everyday speech, when people say henkilökortti, they usually mean the plastic national ID card, not just any document that proves identity.

In a dentist context, both a passport and an ID card can usually serve as henkilöllisyystodistus, but if you specifically want to say “ID card”, henkilökortti is correct.

Does the sentence literally say “I am taking” or “I will take”? How should I think about tense here?

Grammatically, otan is the present tense (“I take / I am taking”). Finnish does not have a separate future tense.

The future meaning comes from the context:

• The action is on a checklist (a plan for later).
• The event (going to the dentist) is also in the future.

So:

• otan henkilökortin mukaan hammaslääkärille
  is best translated as: I’ll take my ID card with me to the dentist.

You can think of Finnish present tense as covering both present and simple future, depending on context.