Kahvinkeitin on rikki, joten juon teetä kahvin sijasta.

The coffee maker is broken, so I drink tea instead of coffee.

Breakdown of Kahvinkeitin on rikki, joten juon teetä kahvin sijasta.

• minä: I
• olla: to be
• juoda: to drink
• joten: so
• rikki: broken
• sijasta: instead of
• kahvi: coffee
• tee: tea
• kahvinkeitin: coffee maker

Questions & Answers about Kahvinkeitin on rikki, joten juon teetä kahvin sijasta.

Why is teetä in the partitive case?

Because juoda (to drink) usually takes the partitive for the thing being consumed when it’s an uncountable substance or an indefinite amount: juon teetä = I drink (some) tea.
You’d more often use the accusative/total object (e.g., teen) only when you mean a specific whole amount/portion, like I’ll drink the tea (all of it) in a particular context.

Why is it kahvin sijasta and not kahvi sijasta?

Because sijasta (instead of) is a postposition that requires the genitive:

• kahvi (nominative) → kahvin (genitive)
  So kahvin sijasta literally means in place of coffee / instead of coffee.

What is the grammar of Kahvinkeitin on rikki? Why rikki and not an adjective form?

rikki is a common predicative word meaning broken/out of order. It behaves like a predicate complement after olla (to be):

• Kahvinkeitin on rikki. = The coffee maker is broken.
  You can also see rikki used very widely: se on rikki (it’s broken), puhelin meni rikki (the phone broke).

Why is there no word for the/a in Finnish?

Finnish doesn’t have articles like the or a/an. Definiteness is inferred from context.
So Kahvinkeitin on rikki can mean The coffee maker is broken (or A coffee maker is broken), but in real usage context makes it clear.

What does joten do in the sentence, and where does it go?

joten means so / therefore, introducing a result clause:

• Coffee maker is broken, *so I drink tea...
  It often comes right after the comma, starting the consequence. The word order after *joten is normal main-clause order.

Why is there a comma before joten?

In Finnish, you normally use a comma to separate two main clauses, especially when the second one is introduced by a connector like joten:

• Kahvinkeitin on rikki, joten ...
  This is standard written punctuation.

How is kahvinkeitin formed? Is it one word on purpose?

Yes—Finnish commonly builds compound nouns as one word.
kahvinkeitin = kahvi (coffee) + keitin (boiler/maker/device) → coffee maker.
Compounds are extremely common, and they’re usually written together.

Why is it juon and not juoda?

juoda is the dictionary (infinitive) form to drink.
juon is the 1st person singular present tense:

• minä juon = I drink / I’m drinking
  The minä is optional because the verb ending already shows the person.

Could I also say juon teetä kahvin tilalla? What’s the difference from sijasta?

Yes, kahvin tilalla can also mean instead of coffee. Both are common.

• X:n sijasta is very standard for instead of X.
• X:n tilalla also means in place of X, sometimes with a slightly more “replacement/substitution” feel.
  In this sentence, kahvin sijasta is the most neutral and typical.

Why is it kahvin (genitive) even though it feels like “instead of coffee” (not “coffee’s”)?

That’s just how Finnish postpositions work: many of them require a specific case on their complement. sijasta requires the genitive, regardless of the English logic.
So it’s not possessive in meaning here; it’s a grammatical requirement: kahvin sijasta.

Is the word order flexible? Could I move kahvin sijasta earlier?

Yes, Finnish word order is fairly flexible for emphasis. For example:

• Kahvinkeitin on rikki, joten kahvin sijasta juon teetä.
  This emphasizes instead of coffee a bit more. The original sentence is the most straightforward, neutral order.

Does juon teetä mean “I am drinking tea right now” or “I drink tea (in general)”?

It can mean either. Finnish present tense covers both present ongoing and general/habitual meaning, and context decides. In this context (coffee maker broken → result), it typically means I’m drinking tea (now/these days) instead.