Kampaaja leikkaa hiukset lyhyemmiksi ja viilaa samalla kynnet siisteiksi.

The hairdresser cuts the hair shorter and at the same time files the nails neat.

Breakdown of Kampaaja leikkaa hiukset lyhyemmiksi ja viilaa samalla kynnet siisteiksi.

• ja: and
• lyhyt: short
• hius: the hair
• samalla: at the same time
• kampaaja: the hairdresser
• leikata: to cut
• viilata: to file
• kynsi: the nail
• siisti: neat

Questions & Answers about Kampaaja leikkaa hiukset lyhyemmiksi ja viilaa samalla kynnet siisteiksi.

Why are hiukset (hair) and kynnet (nails) in the plural form?

In Finnish, both hiukset and kynnet are naturally plural when you talk about a person’s hair or nails.

• hius = a single hair (strand)
• hiukset = hair (all the hair on someone’s head)

In normal everyday language, people almost always say hiukset when they mean someone’s hair.

Similarly:

• kynsi = one nail
• kynnet = nails (all fingernails / toenails)

So kampaaja leikkaa hiukset is literally “the hairdresser cuts the hairs,” but it corresponds to English “cuts the hair.”

Why is there no word for “the” or “my” before hiukset and kynnet?

Finnish has no articles like a or the, so there is no separate word for “the” at all.

Possession is usually clear from context and often left unmarked. In a salon context, hiukset and kynnet will be understood as the customer’s hair and nails.

You could be more explicit:

• Kampaaja leikkaa minun hiukseni. – The hairdresser cuts my hair.
• Kampaaja leikkaa hiukseni. – The hairdresser cuts my hair. (possessive suffix -ni)

But in a natural sentence like the one you’re studying, simply hiukset and kynnet are enough, just like in Finnish instructions:

• Pese kädet. – Wash (your) hands.
• Harjaa hampaat. – Brush (your) teeth.

What case are hiukset and kynnet in here, and why not the partitive (hiuksia, kynsiä)?

hiukset and kynnet are in the nominative plural, used here as total objects.

In object position, Finnish uses:

• Total object (whole thing affected, result complete)

  • singular: often genitive (e.g. kirjan)
  • plural: nominative plural (e.g. kirjat)

• Partitive object (only part affected, or ongoing/unfinished / unbounded action)

  • singular: partitive singular (e.g. kirjaa)
  • plural: partitive plural (e.g. kirjoja)

In your sentence:

• leikkaa hiukset lyhyemmiksi – “cuts the hair to be shorter” → the whole head of hair is affected, there is a clear result.
• viilaa … kynnet siisteiksi – “files the nails neat” → all the nails are worked on to a final tidy state.

Because these are completed, result-focused actions on the whole set of hair/nails, Finnish uses total objects → hiukset, kynnet, not hiuksia, kynsiä.

What does lyhyemmiksi mean exactly, and how is it formed?

lyhyemmiksi means “(into) a shorter state” or “(to be) shorter.”

Formally:

• base adjective: lyhyt = short
• comparative: lyhyempi = shorter
• translative singular: lyhyemmäksi = into a shorter state (for one thing)
• translative plural: lyhyemmiksi = into a shorter state (for several things)

So leikkaa hiukset lyhyemmiksi literally = “cuts the hairs into a shorter state.”

Why are lyhyemmiksi and siisteiksi in this -ksi form?

The -ksi ending marks the translative case. One of its main uses is to express a resulting state after an action, often with verbs like:

• nimetä (to name) → Nimetään lapsi Matiksi. – Let’s name the child Matti.
• maalata (to paint) → Maalasin seinän valkoiseksi. – I painted the wall white.
• tehdä (to make) → Tein sen helpoksi. – I made it easy.

The pattern is:

verb + object + adjective in translative
= “do something to X so that X becomes Y”

In your sentence:

• leikkaa hiukset lyhyemmiksi
  → cuts the hair so that it becomes shorter
• viilaa … kynnet siisteiksi
  → files the nails so that they become neat

So -ksi here signals the new state achieved by the action.

Why are lyhyemmiksi and siisteiksi plural?

Adjectives in Finnish normally agree with the noun they describe in number (and in these structures, also in case).

• hiukset = plural → lyhyemmiksi is plural translative
• kynnet = plural → siisteiksi is plural translative

Singular would be:

• lyhyemmäksi (for one hair / one thing)
• siistiksi (for one nail / one thing)

But here we’re clearly talking about many hairs and many nails, so the adjectives follow that and take plural forms.

Could you also say lyhyiksi instead of lyhyemmiksi? What’s the difference?

Yes, both are grammatically possible, but their meanings differ slightly:

• lyhyiksi – “short” (basic adjective lyhyt)
  
  • leikkaa hiukset lyhyiksi → “cuts the hair short”
• lyhyemmiksi – “shorter” (comparative lyhyempi)
  
  • leikkaa hiukset lyhyemmiksi → “cuts the hair shorter (than before)”

So:

• lyhyiksi focuses on the final absolute length (short).
• lyhyemmiksi focuses on it being shorter relative to the earlier length.

In many real-life contexts, both would be understandable; the choice depends on whether you want to emphasize “short” or “shorter.”

What does samalla mean here, and what form is it?

samalla here means “at the same time” / “simultaneously.”

Morphologically, it’s related to:

• sama = same
• -lla = adessive ending (“on/at”)

Originally “on the same (thing) / with the same (thing),” but in modern Finnish samalla is a common adverb:

• Teen sen samalla. – I’ll do it at the same time / while I’m at it.
• Voit samalla tarkistaa tämän. – You can check this at the same time.

In the sentence, ja viilaa samalla kynnet… = “and (while doing that) also files the nails at the same time.”

What tense are leikkaa and viilaa, and how would I say “is cutting / is filing” in Finnish?

leikkaa and viilaa are in the present tense (preesens).

Finnish does not have a special continuous form like English “is cutting / is filing.” The same present tense covers:

• simple present: “cuts, files”
• present continuous: “is cutting, is filing”

So:

• Kampaaja leikkaa hiukset…
  can mean “The hairdresser cuts the hair…” (habitually / in general)
  or “The hairdresser is cutting the hair…” (right now), depending on context.

If you really need to stress ongoingness, you add adverbs or context, but grammatically it’s still just the present tense.

Is kampaaja gendered like “hairdresser” vs “barber”? Can it refer to a man?

kampaaja is gender‑neutral. It simply means “hairdresser” (someone who does hair, often in a salon), and it can refer to a man or a woman.

There is also:

• parturi – traditionally “barber,” more associated with men’s haircuts, but usage overlaps with kampaaja nowadays.

In your sentence, kampaaja could be any gender; Finnish does not mark gender in the noun, and the verb form leikkaa/viilaa also doesn’t show gender.

What does the verb viilata usually mean? Is it only used for nails?

viilata basically means “to file” (with a file as a tool), to make a surface smoother or change its shape by filing.

Typical uses:

• viilata kynnet – to file one’s nails
• viilata metallia/puuta – to file metal/wood

It also has a slang meaning “to cheat / to scam (someone)”, as in:

• Hän viilasi minua linssiin. – He/she cheated me.

In your sentence, it’s clearly the literal meaning: the hairdresser is filing the nails.

Can the word order in this sentence be changed?

Finnish word order is relatively flexible, though the given order is the most natural:

Kampaaja leikkaa hiukset lyhyemmiksi ja viilaa samalla kynnet siisteiksi.

Some variants are possible, often to add emphasis:

• Kampaaja leikkaa hiukset lyhyemmiksi ja viilaa kynnet samalla siisteiksi.
  (places samalla after kynnet; still fine)

• Kampaaja leikkaa hiukset lyhyemmiksi ja samalla viilaa kynnet siisteiksi.
  (emphasizes samalla = “and at the same time (he/she) files the nails…”)

You wouldn’t usually separate the object from its result adjective, so forms like:

• ✗ … viilaa samalla siisteiksi kynnet

sound unnatural. Normally you keep:

object + result adjective (in translative)
kynnet siisteiksi together as a unit.