Jos metro on myöhässä, kävelen kotiin.

If the metro is late, I walk home.

Breakdown of Jos metro on myöhässä, kävelen kotiin.

• minä: I
• olla: to be
• kävellä: to walk
• jos: if
• -iin: to
• myöhäinen: late
• koti: home
• metro: metro

Questions & Answers about Jos metro on myöhässä, kävelen kotiin.

Why does the sentence start with jos? Is it the same as English if?

Yes. Jos is the common word for if when you’re expressing a condition:

• Jos X, (niin) Y. = If X, (then) Y. Finnish often uses a comma between the condition and the result, and it can optionally include niin (then), especially in more careful or emphatic style:
• Jos metro on myöhässä, (niin) kävelen kotiin.

Why is there a comma after myöhässä?

In Finnish, the conditional clause starting with jos is typically separated from the main clause with a comma:

• Jos ... , kävelen ... This is standard written punctuation (and also common in careful speech).

What does on myöhässä literally mean? Why not use a verb like “to be late”?

Literally, on myöhässä is is in lateness / is late. Finnish commonly expresses “to be late” with:

• olla + myöhässä (to be + late) So:
• metro on myöhässä = the metro is late

What case is myöhässä in, and why?

Myöhässä is in the inessive case (-ssa/-ssä), which often corresponds to in/at. Here it’s part of an idiomatic expression:

• olla myöhässä = to be late Even though it’s an “inessive” form, you usually just learn the whole phrase as the normal way to say be late.

Why is kävelen in the present tense? Doesn’t this refer to the future?

Finnish often uses the present tense to talk about future situations, especially in conditionals and planned/typical outcomes:

• Jos ..., kävelen ... = If ..., I’ll walk ... Finnish doesn’t have a dedicated future tense like English; present tense + context does the job.

How do I know who is doing the walking? Where is the word for “I”?

The subject I is built into the verb ending:

• kävelen = I walk / I will walk Finnish usually omits a separate minä (I) unless you want emphasis or contrast:
• Jos metro on myöhässä, minä kävelen kotiin. (emphasizes “I”)

Why is it kotiin and not koti or kotona?

Because kotiin is the illative form meaning into/to (home)—movement toward home:

• kotiin = (to) home Compare:
• koti = home (dictionary form; not usually used alone to mean “to home”)
• kotona = at home (location, not movement)
• kodissa = in the house/home (more literal “inside,” less common than kotona for everyday “at home”)

Why is it metro (nominative) and not some other case?

Because metro is the subject of the clause metro on myöhässä:

• metro (subject) + on (is) + myöhässä (late) In Finnish, the subject of an olla (“to be”) sentence is typically in the nominative.

Can I switch the order of the clauses?

Yes. Both are common:

• Jos metro on myöhässä, kävelen kotiin.
• Kävelen kotiin, jos metro on myöhässä. Meaning stays essentially the same; the first version foregrounds the condition, the second foregrounds what you’ll do.

Could I say this with a different verb, like “if the metro is delayed” rather than “is late”?

Yes. A common alternative is:

• Jos metro myöhästyy, kävelen kotiin. Here myöhästyy means is delayed / becomes late (verb myöhästyä).
  Difference in feel:
• on myöhässä = states the situation (it’s already late)
• myöhästyy = focuses on the event/process (it gets delayed)

How would I negate it: “If the metro isn’t late, I’ll walk home”?

Negation uses the negative verb ei + the main verb in a special form:

• Jos metro ei ole myöhässä, kävelen kotiin. Here:
• ei = not (3rd person singular)
• ole = negative form of olla (to be)