【芬兰语语法】§21 GENERAL

 Verb forms are built up like nominals by adding endings to stems. Verbs

differ from nominals in that they do not have an independent basic form as

such to which inflectional endings could be attached, as is the case with

nominals: cf. the basic form auto ‘car’ and the inflected forms auto/n, auto/

ssa, auto/i/hin.

The dictionary form of Finnish verbs, i.e. the shorter form of the first

infinitive, already has an ending, e.g. osta/a ‘(to) buy’, vastat/a ‘(to)

answer’, juo/da ‘(to) drink’. Before other verb forms can be made one must

first take off the infinitive ending from the stem, to which other endings are

then added, cf. osta/a ‘(to) buy’ : osta/isi/n ‘I would buy’, osta/nut ‘bought’.

Some verbs have more than one stem, in which case one is formed from

the other, e.g. vastat/a ‘(to) answer’ : vastaa/n ‘I answer’ and tul/la ‘(to)

come’ : tule/n ‘I come’. Consonant gradation (§15) and vowel changes

before -i- (§16) affect verbs in much the same way as nominals, e.g. anta/a

‘(to) give’ : anna/n ’I give‘ (consonant gradation) : anno/i/n ’I gave‘ (vowel

change, and also consonant gradation).

The stems needed for the conjugation of verbs are the infinitive stem,

which is arrived at after the infinitive endings are detached according to the

rules given in §22, and the inflectional stem, which can be formed from the

infinitive stem and to which e.g. the personal endings are added (§23). The

rules for the formation of the inflectional stem are given in §23.

The following examples illustrate the use of the first infinitive (cf. also

§74).

Haluan juo/da olutta. I want to drink some beer.

Tahtoisitko syö/dä? Would you like to eat?

Yritän sano/a asiat selvästi. I try to say the things clearly.

Minun täytyy lähte/ä. I must leave.

Saako täällä laula/a? Can one sing here?

56 Finnish: An Essential Grammar

Nyt sinun pitää lopetta/a. Now you must stop.

Tässä on mukava istu/a. It is nice to sit here.

Olisi kiva men/nä ulos. It would be nice to go out.