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Säästötilille kertyy rahaa kuukausittain.

Säästötilille kertyy rahaa kuukausittain.
Money accumulates in the savings account monthly.
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Questions & Answers about Säästötilille kertyy rahaa kuukausittain.

Why does säästötili become säästötilille? What does -lle mean here?

-lle is the allative case, which typically means to / onto / for.
So säästötilille = to the savings account (i.e., money ends up there).

Finnish often treats things like accounts, websites, lists, etc. as “surfaces”, so the natural case is frequently:

  • tilille = to the account
    rather than something like “into” (even though English says “into an account”).
Is säästötilille one word or two? What is it made of?

It’s one word (plus the case ending) because Finnish loves compounds:

  • säästö = saving(s)
  • tili = account
    → säästötili = savings account
    Then add the allative ending:
  • säästötili + lle → säästötilille
What does the verb kertyy come from, and what form is it?

kertyy is the present tense, 3rd person singular form of the verb kertyä = to accumulate / to accrue / to build up.

Basic pattern:

  • kertyä (dictionary form)
  • kertyy (he/she/it accumulates; things accumulate)

It’s an intransitive verb here (it doesn’t take a direct object in the usual way).

Why is it rahaa (partitive) and not raha (nominative)?

Because this is an existential/“there is/there accumulates” type sentence, and the “thing that appears/accumulates” is commonly in the partitive when it’s:

  • an indefinite amount
  • a mass noun (like money)
  • or generally something not presented as a complete, counted whole

So rahaa suggests “(some) money” accumulating, not a specific, fully bounded sum.

If you made it more “definite/complete”, you might see nominative:

  • Raha kertyy säästötilille... can sound like “The money (that we’re talking about) accumulates...”, but it’s less neutral here than rahaa.
Why is the order Säästötilille kertyy rahaa instead of starting with rahaa?

This is a very typical Finnish location-first structure for existential-type sentences:

  • [place/target] + verb + [indefinite thing]

So it’s like: “To the savings account accumulates money (monthly).”

You can change the order, but it changes the “feel”:

  • Säästötilille kertyy rahaa kuukausittain. (neutral: describing what happens to the account)
  • Rahaa kertyy säästötilille kuukausittain. (a bit more focus on “money”)
  • Kuukausittain kertyy rahaa säästötilille. (focus on “monthly”)
Why is the verb kertyy singular even though rahaa could mean lots of money?

In Finnish existential sentences, the verb is very often 3rd person singular, especially when the “subject-like” element is:

  • partitive (rahaa, euroja, ihmisiä, etc.)
  • indefinite in quantity

So you typically say:

  • Tilille kertyy euroja. (still singular kertyy)

If you talk about a definite plural (specific euros), then plural agreement becomes more natural:

  • Eurot kertyvät tilille. = “The euros accumulate onto the account.” (specific euros)
What exactly does kuukausittain mean, and how is it formed?

kuukausittain means monthly / each month / on a monthly basis.

It’s built from:

  • kuukausi = month
  • -ttain / -ittäin = a suffix meaning “by each / per / in intervals of”

So kuukausittain = “month-by-month”.

Common alternatives:

  • joka kuukausi = every month
  • kuukausittain = monthly (often more “schedule/regularity” sounding)
Could I replace kuukausittain with joka kuukausi? Is there any difference?

Yes, you usually can.

  • ...kuukausittain sounds a bit more like a general policy/regular frequency (“monthly”).
  • ...joka kuukausi is very direct: every month.

Both work in this sentence:

  • Säästötilille kertyy rahaa kuukausittain.
  • Säästötilille kertyy rahaa joka kuukausi.
Does this sentence have a “real” subject? It doesn’t look like English subject–verb order.

In Finnish, rahaa functions as the grammatical subject in many analyses, but the sentence type is an existential construction where:

  • the location/goal (Säästötilille) is placed first
  • the “subject” is often indefinite and in the partitive

So it’s normal that it doesn’t resemble English word order.

A more English-like restructuring is possible, but it changes style:

  • Rahaa kertyy säästötilille kuukausittain. (still Finnish-natural)
  • Kuukausittain rahaa kertyy säästötilille. (focus on frequency)
How would I say this if I want to mention who is adding the money (i.e., making deposits)?

Then you often switch to a verb that takes an agent more naturally, such as tallettaa (to deposit) or the causative kerryttää (to accumulate something).

Examples:

  • Talletan rahaa säästötilille kuukausittain. = I deposit money into the savings account monthly.
  • Säästän rahaa säästötilille kuukausittain. = I save money into the savings account monthly.
  • Kerrytän säästötiliä kuukausittain. (less common wording; implies “I build up the savings account monthly”)

Your original sentence focuses on the result (money accumulates), not the actor.