Tagesschau World 1d ago Original

Belfastissa oli mellakoita maanantaina.

There were riots in Belfast on Monday.

Finnish · A2 level

Simple Finnish

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1.

Poliisi kertoi kaupungissa useista väkivallan tapahtumapaikoista.

The police reported several scenes of violence in the city.
2.

Mellakoijat polttivat autoja ja taloja.

Rioters burned cars and houses.
3.

Ihmiset pelkäsivät ja pysyivät kodeissaan.

People were afraid and stayed in their homes.
4.

Vanhus Helen Williamson pakeni liekkejä.

Elderly Helen Williamson fled the flames.
5.

Mellakoijat huusivat ulkomaalaisille vihaisia huutoja.

Rioters shouted angry slogans at foreigners.
6.

Poliitikot sanoivat, että vihaa lietsoo tahallaan.

Politicians said that hatred is being stirred up intentionally.
7.

Oikeistopoliitikko Tommy Robinson kehotti mellakoimaan.

Right-wing politician Tommy Robinson urged people to riot.
8.

Poliitikot sanoivat, että väkivalta ei ole uutta Belfastissa.

Politicians said that violence is not new in Belfast.

Key Words

Word	English	Form
mellakka mellakoita	riot riots (partitive plural)	partitive plural
polttaa polttivat	to burn they burned (past tense)	past tense (3rd person plural)
paeta pakeni	to flee she/he fled (past tense)	past tense (3rd person singular)
huutaa huusivat	to shout they shouted (past tense)	past tense (3rd person plural)
lietsoa lietsoo	to stir up stirs up (passive present)	passive present tense
kehottaa kehotti	to urge he/she urged (past tense)	past tense (3rd person singular)

0. Belfastissa oli mellakoita maanantaina.

This sentence uses the inessive case ('-ssa') to indicate location. The inessive case answers the question 'where?' and is formed by adding '-ssa' or '-ssä' to the noun stem, depending on vowel harmony. Here, 'Belfast' becomes 'Belfastissa' to show that the riots happened *in* Belfast. Learners can use this case to describe where an action takes place, e.g., 'Helsingissä on paljon turisteja' (There are many tourists in Helsinki).

3. Ihmiset pelkäsivät ja pysyivät kodeissaan.

This sentence features the past tense of two verbs: 'pelätä' (to fear) and 'pysyä' (to stay). In Finnish, past tense verbs in the 3rd person plural end in '-ivät' or '-ivat' (e.g., 'pelkäsivät'). The verb 'pysyä' is followed by the inessive case ('kodeissaan') to indicate where people stayed. Learners can practice this structure to describe past actions, e.g., 'He söivät ravintolassa' (They ate at a restaurant).

6. Poliitikot sanoivat, että vihaa lietsoo tahallaan.

This sentence uses the passive present tense ('lietsoo') to describe an ongoing action without specifying the subject. The passive is common in Finnish to focus on the action rather than who performs it. Here, it emphasizes that hatred is being stirred up, without naming who is responsible. Learners can use the passive to generalize statements, e.g., 'Täällä puhutaan suomea' (Finnish is spoken here).