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Lesson Transcript

Hei, minun nimeni on Paula. Hi everybody! I’m Paula.
Welcome to FinnishPod101.com’s “Suomea kolmessa minuutissa”. The fastest, easiest, and most fun way to learn Finnish.
In the last lesson, we were practicing how to use the verb olla while talking about nationality. This time we will be using the same verb but for a different purpose. It can also be used to tell where you are. For example, “I’m at school” or "I'm at work."
So when you want to know where something or someone is, you use the verb olla.
For example, when someone asks you on the phone Missä sinä olet? they want to know "Where are you?".
Let's break it down.
Missä means "Where".
I’m sure you already remember the word sinä, “you”.
olet is the conjugated form of olla "are” or “to be”.
All together, Missä sinä olet?
[slowly] Missä sinä olet?
Answering this question is as easy as the asking was. You just say Minä olen and add the place where you are.
Minä means “I” and
olen is olla conjugated minä.
And finally, the place where you are. For example, Minä olen kaupassa which is "I’m at the store."
[slowly] Minä olen kaupassa.
Now let’s see a few other possible answers with “I”-
"I’m at a restaurant" would be Minä olen ravintolassa.
"I’m at the gym" would be Minä olen kuntosalilla.
"I’m on a bus" would be Minä olen bussissa.
Again, the topic of the case of the noun comes up. When you are talking about your location, you add -ssa or -lla to the end of the noun. But how do you know which one to choose? The basic rule is to use -ssa when you are inside, and -lla when outside. For example, talossa would be translated as “in the house”, and talolla “at the house.” However, it can change according to the context.
Now it’s time for Paula’s Points.
Sometimes when talking about locations, you can hear the verb sijaita being used. It literally means “to be located”. So imagine being in Helsinki and wanting to find a street named Mannerheimintie. You can ask a passer-by, Anteeksi, missä Mannerheimintie sijaitsee?. It would mean, “excuse me, where is Mannerheimintie located?”
Now you know how to talk about locations, and a new way to use the verb olla! But that’s not all there is to it, as it happens to be a very useful verb. Want to know your Finnish friends age? You will learn all about how to ask with the help of olla in the next Suomea kolmessa minuutissa lesson.
Nähdään pian!

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