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Pidä ikkuna kiinni, jos ulkona on kova melu.

Pidä ikkuna kiinni, jos ulkona on kova melu.
Keep the window closed if there is loud noise outside.
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Questions & Answers about Pidä ikkuna kiinni, jos ulkona on kova melu.

Why does Pidä mean keep here, when I’ve also learned pitää as must / have to?

Finnish pitää has two very common uses:

  • pitää + object = to hold / to keep (a thing in some state)
    → Pidä ikkuna kiinni. = Keep the window closed.
  • pitää + verb in -TA/-TÄ (1st infinitive) = must / have to
    → Minun pitää mennä. = I have to go.

So the grammar pattern tells you which meaning is intended.

What form is Pidä—is it an imperative?

Yes. Pidä is the 2nd person singular imperative of pitää:

  • (sinä) pidä = keep! / hold! (subject sinä is implied)

Other related forms:

  • Pitäkää = keep! (to multiple people / polite)
  • Pidetään = let’s keep… (1st person plural imperative)
Why is it ikkuna and not ikkunan?

In Finnish, a “complete/total object” in the imperative is typically in the nominative:

  • Avaa ovi! (not oven)
  • Syö omena!
  • Pidä ikkuna kiinni!

In a normal statement (indicative), you would often see the -n total object:

  • Pidän ikkunan kiinni. = I keep the window closed.

So ikkuna here is behaving like the imperative’s normal object form.

Could it also be Pidä ikkunaa kiinni? What would that change?

Yes, ikkunaa (partitive) is possible in some contexts. The difference is about how you frame the action:

  • Pidä ikkuna kiinni tends to sound like “keep it closed (as a rule / as the desired end state).”
  • Pidä ikkunaa kiinni can emphasize an ongoing/continuous “keeping” (or sometimes sound a bit more situational).

In everyday instructions, Pidä ikkuna kiinni is very common and natural.

What exactly does kiinni mean? Is it an adjective?

kiinni is an adverb-like word meaning closed / shut / (firmly) in place / attached depending on context.

With doors/windows it means closed:

  • Ovi on kiinni. = The door is closed.
  • Pidä ikkuna kiinni. = Keep the window closed.

It doesn’t inflect like a normal adjective in this use; it stays kiinni.

Why is it ikkuna kiinni and not something like ikkuna kiinnissä?

Finnish often expresses states like open/closed with words such as auki (open) and kiinni (closed) without adding a case ending:

  • ikkuna on auki / kiinni
  • pidä ikkuna auki / kiinni

So kiinni is the standard form used for this “state” construction.

What case is ulkona, and how is it formed?

ulkona is a fixed locative adverb meaning outside. It contains an old -na/-nä ending (often described as essive-like in form), seen in several common place-words:

  • kotona = at home
  • ulkona = outside

You generally learn ulkona as a whole word meaning outside rather than as a productive “noun + case” pattern you can freely apply.

Why is it jos ulkona on kova melu and not jos ulkona on kovaa melua?

Both can be used, but they emphasize slightly different things:

  • jos ulkona on kova melu
    kova melu is nominative and treats it like “there is a loud noise / the noise is loud” (more bounded, more like a single condition/state).

  • jos ulkona on kovaa melua
    partitive kovaa melua is more like “if there is (some/a lot of) loud noise” (more mass-like/ongoing, not bounded).

The sentence you have is perfectly natural; kova melu is a common way to phrase it.

Why is there no subject in the first part?

Imperatives in Finnish normally omit the explicit subject because it’s understood:

  • Pidä … = (Sinä) pidä … = You keep …

So the “missing” subject is simply implied.

What is the function of the comma?

The comma separates the main clause from the subordinate jos clause:

  • Pidä ikkuna kiinni, (main clause: command)
  • jos ulkona on kova melu. (condition: “if there is loud noise outside”)

In Finnish, a subordinate clause introduced by jos is typically set off with a comma like this.

Could I also say Sulje ikkuna, jos… instead of Pidä ikkuna kiinni, jos…?

Yes, but the nuance changes:

  • Sulje ikkuna, jos… = Close the window, if… (focus on the action of closing it)
  • Pidä ikkuna kiinni, jos… = Keep the window closed, if… (focus on maintaining the closed state)

If you mean “don’t open it / make sure it stays closed,” Pidä… kiinni fits especially well.