Tämä tie on lyhyempi kuin se reitti, jota kuljen yleensä.

This road is shorter than the route that I usually take.

Breakdown of Tämä tie on lyhyempi kuin se reitti, jota kuljen yleensä.

• minä: I
• olla: to be
• tämä: this
• yleensä: usually
• se: that
• kuin: than
• lyhyempi: shorter
• tie: road
• reitti: route
• joka: that/which
• kulkea: to take (a route)

Questions & Answers about Tämä tie on lyhyempi kuin se reitti, jota kuljen yleensä.

How is lyhyempi formed, and what does it correspond to in English?

Lyhyempi is the comparative form of lyhyt (short).
Finnish comparatives are typically formed with -mpi/-mpi- (with some stem changes), so:

• lyhyt → lyhye- (stem used in comparison) → lyhyempi = shorter

So Tämä tie on lyhyempi... corresponds to This road is shorter...

Why does Finnish use kuin here, and what exactly does it do?

Kuin is the standard word used in comparisons, roughly than in English:

• lyhyempi kuin ... = shorter than ...

It introduces the thing you’re comparing against: se reitti (that route).

Is there a difference between kuin and kun? I’ve seen both.

Yes. In standard Finnish:

• kuin is used for comparisons and also often means as / than / like
• kun usually means when (time) or sometimes since/because in casual use

In a clean comparative like this, kuin is the expected choice:

• lyhyempi kuin se reitti = shorter than that route

Why does it say Tämä tie but then se reitti? Why not use the same demonstrative both times?

Finnish often uses demonstratives to contrast items:

• tämä = this (the one close, current, being pointed out)
• se = that/the (the other one, previously known, or the “default” reference)

Here, tämä tie is the road you’re talking about right now, and se reitti is the usual route you normally take (a known reference point), so se feels natural.

Could you drop se and just say kuin reitti, jota...?

Yes, it’s possible, but it changes the feel.

• ...kuin se reitti, jota... points to a specific, identifiable route (your usual one).
• ...kuin reitti, jota... is more like than a route that I usually take, sounding more generic.

With yleensä (usually) and the relative clause, se reitti matches the intended “specific usual route” reading well.

What is jota, and why is it used here?

Jota is a relative pronoun form of joka (which/that/who) used when the relative pronoun is in the partitive case.

In se reitti, jota kuljen yleensä, it means:

• the route that I usually travel (along)

So jota = which/that (as the object/needed case form inside the relative clause).

Why is the relative pronoun in the partitive (jota) instead of something like jonka?

Because the verb and meaning here treat the route more like an “ongoing path” rather than a fully bounded object you “complete.”

With movement verbs like kulkea (to travel / go along / pass through), Finnish commonly uses partitive for the route/path you’re traveling along:

• kuljen tätä reittiä = I travel along this route

So in the relative clause, reitti becomes:

• reitti, jota kuljen (partitive relative)

Jonka would be genitive and would more naturally fit meanings like whose/of which or cases where the grammar specifically requires genitive, not this “travel along” sense.

Can you show the “full” underlying structure of the relative clause?

Yes. Think of it like this:

Base idea (two sentences):

• Kuljen sitä reittiä yleensä. = I usually travel that route.
• Tämä tie on lyhyempi kuin se reitti. = This road is shorter than that route.

Combine them with a relative clause modifying reitti:

• ... kuin se reitti, jota kuljen yleensä.

Here, jota stands in for sitä reittiä inside the clause.

Why is there a comma before jota kuljen yleensä?

In Finnish, non-restrictive and restrictive relative clauses are typically separated with a comma in writing:

• se reitti, jota kuljen yleensä = that route, which I usually take

So the comma is normal punctuation for a relative clause introduced by jota/joka/jonka etc.

What does kuljen tell me grammatically?

kuljen is:

• verb: kulkea (to travel / go along / walk / go)
• person/number: 1st person singular (I)
• tense: present

So kuljen yleensä = I usually travel/go (this way).

Does the word order matter? Could yleensä move?

Finnish word order is flexible, but changes emphasis:

• jota kuljen yleensä = neutral: which I usually take
• jota yleensä kuljen = emphasizes usually
• jota kuljen tavallisesti = similar, using a synonym (tavallisesti)

The sentence you have is a very natural neutral ordering.

Is there any nuance between tie and reitti in this sentence?

Yes:

• tie = a road (a physical roadway)
• reitti = a route (the chosen way/path, which may include multiple roads, paths, turns)

So the sentence naturally contrasts:

• this particular road vs. that usual route you take.