Kysyn vuokranantajalta, onko asunto vielä vapaa.

I ask the landlord whether the apartment is still available.

Breakdown of Kysyn vuokranantajalta, onko asunto vielä vapaa.

• minä: I
• olla: to be
• kysyä: to ask
• -lta: from
• vielä: still
• asunto: the apartment
• -ko: whether
• vuokranantaja: the landlord
• vapaa: available

Questions & Answers about Kysyn vuokranantajalta, onko asunto vielä vapaa.

Why is it kysyn and not kysy or kysyy?

Kysyn is the 1st person singular present tense of kysyä (to ask):

• minä kysyn = I ask / I’m asking
• sinä kysyt = you ask
• hän kysyy = he/she asks
  Finnish often drops the pronoun (minä) because the verb ending already shows the person.

What case is vuokranantajalta, and why is that ending used?

Vuokranantajalta is in the ablative case (-lta/-ltä), which often marks “from” someone. With verbs like kysyä (to ask), Finnish commonly expresses “ask someone” as ask from someone:

• Kysyn vuokranantajalta = I ask the landlord (literally, “from the landlord”).

How do I know vuokranantajalta means “from the landlord” and not something else?

The ending -lta/-ltä specifically signals ablative (“from off / from”). Compare:

• vuokranantaja = landlord (basic form)
• vuokranantajalla = on/at the landlord (adessive, -lla)
• vuokranantajalta = from the landlord (ablative, -lta)
  In context with kysyä, -lta is the normal choice.

Why is there a comma after vuokranantajalta?

Because what follows is an embedded/indirect question clause: onko asunto vielä vapaa. Finnish usually separates the main clause and the subordinate clause with a comma:

• Kysyn ..., onko ... = I ask ..., whether ...

What does onko mean, and how is it formed?

Onko = is (it)? / whether (it) is.
It’s made from:

• on = is (3rd person singular of olla, “to be”)
• -ko/-kö = a question particle meaning “(is it)?” or “whether” in embedded questions.
  So onko introduces a yes/no question: whether it is...

Why is it onko asunto... instead of asunto on...?

Asunto on vielä vapaa is a statement: “The apartment is still available.”
Onko asunto vielä vapaa? is a direct question: “Is the apartment still available?”
Inside your sentence, it’s an embedded yes/no question, so Finnish uses the same structure with -ko/-kö: ..., onko asunto vielä vapaa.

Why is asunto in the basic form (nominative), not a different case?

Because asunto is the subject of the clause onko asunto vielä vapaa. With olla (“to be”), the thing being described is typically the subject in nominative:

• Asunto on vapaa = The apartment is available.

What is vielä doing here?

Vielä means still / yet. It implies the situation could change:

• onko asunto vielä vapaa = is the apartment still available (as of now)?
  Without it, you’d simply ask if it’s available at all: onko asunto vapaa.

Does vapaa literally mean “free”? Why does it mean “available” here?

Yes, vapaa often means free (as in not occupied) or available (as in not taken). In housing/rent contexts, vapaa commonly means vacant/available:

• asunto on vapaa = the apartment is available (not rented/occupied).

Could I use että instead of onko?

Not in this meaning. että introduces a statement (“that...”), not a yes/no question. Compare:

• Kysyn, onko asunto vapaa. = I ask whether it’s available.
• Sanon, että asunto on vapaa. = I say that it’s available.
  If you used että with kysyn, it would sound wrong or would require a different construction.

Is the tense here present or “I’m going to ask”?

It’s present tense: I ask / I’m asking. In Finnish, present tense often covers what English might express as “I’m asking” (right now) or sometimes a near-future intention from context, but the basic meaning is present.

How would I say this more directly, like “I’ll ask the landlord if it’s still available”?

Common options:

• Kysyn vuokranantajalta, onko asunto vielä vapaa. (your sentence; natural)
• Kysyn vuokranantajalta, että onko asunto vielä vapaa. (heard in speech, but the extra että is often considered unnecessary/nonstandard)
• Kysyn vuokranantajalta, onko se vielä vapaa. (se = it, referring to the apartment)