To have
1. Having something
Finnish doesn't have a separate verb for "to have". Instead it uses a different sentence construction, centered around the verb "olla", "to be".
| Person + lla | Verb | Object |
| Minulla | on | yksi lapsi. |
| Sinulla | on | oma huone. |
| Hänellä | on | vanha talo. |
| Meillä | on | auto. |
| Teillä | on | kaksi lasta. |
| Heillä | on | kissa. |
| Jaanalla | on | koira. |
It's interesting to note that the "minulla on" literally means"on me there is". Furthermore, you can see from the sentences above that the "olla" verb doesn't get conjugated! It is always written in the third person singular "on".
2. Not having something
Not having something follows the same pattern:
| Person + lla | Verb | Object |
| Minulla | ei ole | poikaystävää. |
| Sinulla | ei ole | omaa huonetta. |
| Hänellä | ei ole | parveketta. |
| Meillä | ei ole | perhettä. |
| Teillä | ei ole | autoa. |
| Heillä | ei ole | kissaa. |
| Tiinalla | ei ole | koiraa. |
The object of a "minulla ei ole" sentence will be written in the partitive.
There are five exceptions to this rule:
| Affirmative | Translation | Negative | Translation |
| Minulla on kiire. | I'm in a hurry | Minulla ei ole kiire. | I'm not in a hurry. |
| Sinulla on nälkä. | You're hungry. | Sinulla ei ole nälkä. | You're not hungry. |
| Hänellä on jano. | He's thirsty. | Hänellä ei ole jano. | He's not thirsty. |
| Meillä on kuuma. | We're hot. | Meillä ei ole kuuma. | We're not hot. |
| Heillä on kylmä. | They're cold. | Heillä ei ole kylmä. | They're not cold. |
For the examples above, the object is written in the nominative even in a negative sentence! Notice also that these are phrases that are very different from English: in English you say ""I am hungry, not "I have hunger" for example.
3. Things that have something
Important to notice is also that this rule only counts for living things. If a room has 2 windows, in Finnish you will say "In the room there are two windows."
| Affirmative | Translation | Negative | Translation |
| Asunnossa on ikkuna. | In the apartment there is a window. | Asunnossa ei ole ikkunaa. | In the apartment there isn't a window. |
| Pihalla on kori. | In the yard there is a basket. | Pihalla ei ole koria. | In the yard there isn't a basket. |
| Related grammar |
| Negation : The partitive : The verb types : The adessive |