Log inSign up

Ilman apua en selviä tästä tehtävästä.

Ilman apua en selviä tästä tehtävästä.
Without help, I won’t get through this task.
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Finnish grammar and vocabulary.

Start learning Finnish now

Questions & Answers about Ilman apua en selviä tästä tehtävästä.

Why does ilman mean without, and why is apua in the partitive case?

Ilman is a preposition meaning without. In Finnish, ilman typically requires the partitive case for the noun that follows it.
So:

  • apu = help (dictionary form, nominative)
  • apua = help (partitive singular)
    Ilman apua = without (any) help.
What does en selviä mean grammatically? Why isn’t the verb fully conjugated like en selviän?

Finnish negation uses a special negative auxiliary verb that carries the person ending:

  • en = I do not

The main verb then appears in the connegative form (a form without personal ending):

  • selvitä (to cope / manage / get through)
  • connegative present: selviä

So en selviä = I don’t manage / I can’t cope.
You don’t say en selviän in standard Finnish; the person marking goes on en, not on the main verb.

What is the base form of selviä, and why does it look different from selvitä?

The dictionary form is selvitä. In the present tense stem, the -t- drops:

  • selvitä → stem selviä- Examples:
  • selviän = I manage (positive present)
  • en selviä = I don’t manage (negative present)

This is a common verb pattern in Finnish (verbs ending in -ta/-tä often have a stem without t in certain forms).

Why is it tästä tehtävästä and not something like tämän tehtävän?

tästä tehtävästä is in the elative case (-sta/-stä), which often expresses out of / from / through something. With selvitä, Finnish commonly uses elative to mean get through / cope with something:

  • selvitä jostakin = to get through something / cope with something

So:

  • tästä = from/out of this (elative of tämä)
  • tehtävästä = from/out of the task (elative of tehtävä)

Using tämän tehtävän (genitive/accusative-like) would suggest a different structure and doesn’t fit the typical selvitä jostakin pattern.

Why are there two words for “this”: tästä and the implied this in tehtävästä?

Finnish often stacks a demonstrative with a noun, and both agree in case:

  • tästä tehtävästä = from this task

Here:

  • tästä (elative) modifies
  • tehtävästä (also elative)

This agreement is normal: demonstratives, adjectives, and many modifiers match the noun’s case and number.

Could you drop tästä and just say en selviä tehtävästä?

Yes. En selviä tehtävästä is grammatical and means I won’t manage the task / I can’t get through the task.
Adding tästä makes it more specific and situational: this particular task (here/now).

Does this sentence mean “I won’t survive” literally?

Not here. selvitä can mean survive, but it very commonly means manage / cope / get through, especially with tasks, situations, or difficulties.
In this sentence, the natural meaning is I can’t manage/get through this task without help.

What tense is this—present or future?

It’s present tense in form, but Finnish present tense often covers what English expresses with either present or future, depending on context.
So en selviä tästä tehtävästä can mean:

  • I can’t manage this task (now / in general)
  • I won’t manage this task (implied future), especially if you’re talking about an upcoming deadline.
Why is the word order Ilman apua en selviä... instead of starting with en?

Finnish word order is flexible and used for emphasis. Placing Ilman apua first highlights the condition (without help).
You could also say:

  • En selviä tästä tehtävästä ilman apua.
    Same core meaning, but the emphasis shifts slightly toward the statement I won’t manage rather than the condition.
Why is apua singular? Would ilman apuja ever be used?

Ilman apua is the normal, idiomatic way to say without help (help as an uncountable idea).
ilman apuja (partitive plural) is possible but unusual; it would suggest without (various) aids/helps as countable items (like tools, supports, forms of assistance), and it’s not the default phrasing.

How would you say the positive version: “With help I’ll manage this task”?

A natural positive version is:

  • Avun kanssa selviän tästä tehtävästä. = With help, I’ll manage this task.

More idiomatic in many situations:

  • Selviän tästä tehtävästä avun avulla. = I’ll get through this task with the help of (someone/something).
    Here avun avulla uses genitive + avulla (with the help of), which is very common.