Understanding the Finnish Past Tense
In Finnish, the past tense is used to talk about things that have already happened. It's like telling a story about something you did yesterday or last week.
Important Points
- The past tense in Finnish is often formed by adding an ending to the verb stem.
- The most common past tense ending is '-i'.
- The verb stem might change a little when you add the past tense ending.
- Some verbs have irregular past tense forms, which means they don't follow the usual rules.
Examples
- Minä menin kouluun. (I went to school.)
- Hän osti uuden kirjan. (He/she bought a new book.)
- Me pelasimme jalkapalloa. (We played football.)
You use the past tense to talk about actions or events that are finished. For example, if you ate breakfast in the morning, you would use the past tense to tell someone about it.
Examples
- Hän nukkui hyvin viime yönä. (He/she slept well last night.)
- He söivät jäätelöä eilen. (They ate ice cream yesterday.)
Irregular Verbs in Past Tense
Important Points
- Some verbs do not follow the regular pattern and have unique past tense forms.
- These verbs need to be memorized because they don't use the usual '-i' ending.
Examples
- Minä olin kotona. (I was at home.)
- Hän tuli myöhässä. (He/she came late.)