Minä otan kahvia. Entä sinä?

Because otan is the 1st person singular form of the verb ottaa (to take, to have, depending on context).

• ottaa = the dictionary/basic form
• otan = I take / I’ll take / I’m having

So:

• Minä otan = I take / I’ll take

Finnish verbs change their endings depending on the subject, just like I am / you are in English.

Yes. In Finnish, the verb ending often already shows the subject.

• otan already means I take
• so Minä otan and Otan can both mean I take / I’ll have

The pronoun minä is often included for:

• emphasis
• clarity
• contrast

In this sentence, Minä otan kahvia. Entä sinä?, using minä helps set up a contrast with sinä (you).

Because kahvia is the partitive form of kahvi (coffee).

In Finnish, the partitive is often used when talking about:

• an unspecified amount
• some of something
• substances or mass nouns
• something not viewed as a complete, countable whole

So:

• kahvi = coffee
• kahvia = some coffee / coffee (as an uncountable amount)

In Minä otan kahvia, the idea is something like I’ll have some coffee.

This is very common with drinks and food:

• juon vettä = I drink water / some water
• syön leipää = I eat bread / some bread

Yes, but it means something a bit different.

• Minä otan kahvia = I’ll have some coffee
• Minä otan kahvin = I’ll take the coffee / a coffee / one coffee

kahvin is an accusative/genitive-type object form used when the object is seen as a whole, complete item.

So the difference is roughly:

• kahvia → an unspecified amount, substance
• kahvin → one whole serving/item, more bounded or complete

In everyday situations, both may appear depending on what exactly the speaker means.

Entä sinä? means What about you? or And you?

It is a very common Finnish way to ask for the other person’s answer after giving your own.

Examples:

• Minä otan kahvia. Entä sinä? = I’ll have coffee. What about you?
• Minä olen väsynyt. Entä sinä? = I’m tired. What about you?

So entä is useful when you want to turn the question back to the other person.

Yes. Very naturally.

It often follows another statement or answer:

• Minä otan kahvia. Entä sinä?
• Minä asun Helsingissä. Entä sinä?
• Minä pidän teestä. Entä sinä?

It depends on previous context, so by itself it means something like:

• What about you?
• And you?

The normal, neutral word order is:

• Minä otan kahvia.

Finnish word order is more flexible than English, but changing it usually changes the emphasis.

For example:

• Minä otan kahvia. = neutral
• Kahvia minä otan. = It’s coffee that I’m having
• Otan kahvia. = neutral, without the pronoun

So yes, the basic order is standard here, but other orders are possible for emphasis.

It is present tense, but in Finnish the present tense often also covers what English expresses with will in simple everyday situations.

So Minä otan kahvia can mean:

• I take coffee
• I’m having coffee
• I’ll have coffee

The exact translation depends on context. In a café or when choosing something, I’ll have coffee is often the most natural English meaning.

A rough guide for an English speaker:

• Minä ≈ MIH-nah
• otan ≈ OH-tahn
• kahvia ≈ KAH-hvee-ah
• Entä ≈ EN-tah
• sinä ≈ SEE-nah

A few useful pronunciation notes:

• ä is not the same as English a. It is more like the vowel in British cat or a very front a sound.
• Finnish stress is usually on the first syllable:
  • MInä
  • Otan
  • KAHvia
  • ENtä
  • SInä

Also, Finnish pronunciation is usually very regular compared with English.

Sometimes, yes, but Entä sinä? is the most complete and natural version when you specifically mean What about you?

If you say just Entä?, it usually feels more dependent on the situation and may sound less complete on its own. It can work in conversation, but for learners it is safest to use:

• Entä sinä? = What about you?

No. Like many common verbs, ottaa has several meanings depending on context.

It can mean:

• take
• have
• choose
• pick
• accept

In this sentence, Minä otan kahvia, the most natural English translation is often:

• I’ll have coffee rather than the more literal
• I take coffee

So it is best to learn ottaa as a flexible verb whose exact English translation depends on the situation.