Kieltosanoja

Kieltosanoja is a Finnish grammar term referring to words and particles used to express negation or prohibition in a sentence. The core kieltosana is ei, a negation particle that negates predicates in finite clauses. Its forms reflect the person and number of the subject: en (I do not), et (you do not), ei (he/she/it does not), emme (we do not), ette (you all do not), eivät (they do not). For example: Minä en syö omenaa, Sinä et juo kahvia, Hän ei tule, Me emme mene, Te ette ymmärrä, He eivät pidä siitä.

In addition to ei, Finnish uses negation in the imperative with the prohibitive forms äälä and älkää. Singular: Älä, plural/polite: Älkää. These negate the action of the verb in commands: Älä kosketa sitä, Älkää koskeko sitä.

Kieltosanoja also appear in other negation contexts, such as negating tense or aspect with olla, for example En ole nähnyt elokuvaa (I have not seen the movie) or Emme ole valmiita (We are not ready). In clauses with other verbs, the negation word typically precedes the finite verb: En tiedä, mitä hän sanoo. The structure and agreement of the negation form align with the subject and finite verb.

Overall, kieltosanoja are a fundamental part of Finnish negation grammar, enabling both simple and complex negation across tenses, moods, and voices. They should not be confused with prohibitions outside grammar, such as bans or taboo words.