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Tarkistan summan vielä kerran ennen kuin maksan laskun.

Tarkistan summan vielä kerran ennen kuin maksan laskun.
I check the amount once more before I pay the bill.

Breakdown of Tarkistan summan vielä kerran ennen kuin maksan laskun.

minä
I
ennen kuin
before
tarkistaa
to check
maksaa
to pay
summa
amount
vielä kerran
once more
lasku
bill
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Questions & Answers about Tarkistan summan vielä kerran ennen kuin maksan laskun.

Why is tarkistan in the present tense if this is about something I’ll do before paying?

Finnish often uses the present tense to talk about near-future actions, especially in everyday speech. Tarkistan (I check / I’ll check) and maksan (I pay / I’ll pay) can both refer to what you typically do or what you’re about to do in a specific situation. Context supplies the “future” feeling.

What do summan and laskun mean, and why do they end in -n?
  • summa = sum / total (amount)
  • lasku = bill / invoice
    The -n ending here is the object form used when the action is seen as complete/whole:
  • tarkistan summan = I check the total (a specific total, as a whole)
  • maksan laskun = I pay the bill (the whole bill gets paid)

This -n form is often called the “total object” (formally it’s genitive singular in these positives: summan, laskun).

Could it be tarkistan summaa instead? What’s the difference?

Yes, tarkistan summaa is possible, but it changes the nuance:

  • tarkistan summan → checking the total as a completed, definite thing (you verify it)
  • tarkistan summaa (partitive) → checking the amount in a more ongoing/partial/indefinite way (e.g., looking at it, reviewing it, not necessarily “verifying it as finished”)

In many practical contexts (like paying), summan is very natural because you’re verifying the final total.

Why is it ennen kuin + a full verb (maksan) instead of an infinitive?

ennen kuin introduces a subordinate clause and typically requires a finite verb:

  • ennen kuin maksan laskun = before I pay the bill

Finnish can also express “before doing X” with a noun/infinitive-like structure, but it’s a different construction, for example:

  • ennen laskun maksamista = before paying the bill (more formal/compact)
Why is there a comma: ... vielä kerran ennen kuin maksan ...?

Finnish normally uses a comma before a subordinate clause introduced by words like ennen kuin, kun, että, etc. So:

  • Tarkistan summan vielä kerran, ennen kuin maksan laskun. In practice, many writers keep it exactly as in your sentence: a comma before ennen kuin is standard.
What does vielä kerran mean, and where does it usually go in the sentence?

vielä kerran means once more / one more time.
It commonly comes after the object (as here) or near the verb:

  • Tarkistan summan vielä kerran... (very natural)
  • Vielä kerran tarkistan summan... (more emphasis on “once more”)
Why is the word order like this? Could I say Ennen kuin maksan laskun, tarkistan summan vielä kerran?

Yes, that alternate order is correct. Finnish word order is flexible:

  • Tarkistan summan vielä kerran ennen kuin maksan laskun. (main clause first; very neutral)
  • Ennen kuin maksan laskun, tarkistan summan vielä kerran. (subordinate clause first; it foregrounds the “before paying” timing)

When the subordinate clause comes first, the comma after it is also standard.

What do the verb endings in tarkistan and maksan tell me?

Both are 1st person singular present:

  • tarkista-n = I check
  • maksa-n = I pay

The -n ending is the key marker for I in the present tense for these verb types.

Is lasku always a “bill,” or can it mean something else?

lasku can mean:

  • bill / invoice (most common in this kind of sentence) It can also appear in other meanings depending on context (like “calculation” in some compounds/uses), but on its own in everyday payment contexts, lasku is “bill/invoice.”
How do I pronounce tricky parts like tarkistan, summan, and ennen kuin?

Key points:

  • Stress is usually on the first syllable: TAR-ki-stan, SUM-man, EN-nen
  • Double consonants matter: summan has mm (hold the m longer)
  • ennen kuin is two words: EN-nen kuin; ui in kuin is a single diphthong (roughly like “koo-in” said quickly, but as one smooth vowel glide)

If you want, tell me your accent/dialect background and I can give closer English approximations.