The conditional mood has the mode suffix isi, e.g. usko|a : usko|isi. In spoken language, the suffix often loses one or even both of its i’s, e.g. uskois or uskos.
The suffix is appended to the vowel stem of the verb. This causes differences like tarjos|i (past tense form of tarjot|a : tarjoa|a, using the consonant stem) versus tarjoa|isi (conditional, using the vowel stem).
The personal suffixes are the same as in the indicative present tense, with the following exceptions:
|
Person |
English |
Standard Finnish |
Spoken Finnish |
|
1st singular |
I would say |
sanoisin |
mä sanoisin ∼ sanosin |
|
2nd singular |
you would say |
sanoisit |
sä sanoisit ∼ sanosit |
|
3rd singular |
he/she would say |
sanoisi |
se sanois ∼ sanos |
|
1st plural |
we would say |
sanoisimme |
me sanottais ∼ sanottais |
|
2nd plural |
you would say |
sanoisitte |
te sanoisitte ∼ sanositte |
|
3rd plural |
they would say |
sanoisivat |
ne sanois ∼ sanos |
|
4th |
(one would say) |
sanottaisiin |
sanottais ∼ sanottais |
In addition to vowel changes before a suffix starting with i, some vowel changes take place before the conditional suffix, though fewer than in past tense forms. The changes can be summarized as follows:
Due to the structure of the suffix, the stem is always in the strong grade in Consonant gradation. For example, for pohtia, the present tense forms have different grades depending on personal suffix, pohdin, pohdit, pohtii etc., but the conditional forms all have the strong grade ht: pohtisin, pohtisit, pohtisi etc.
The term “conditional mood” is somewhat misleading: most conditions have the indicative mood, not conditional. The uses of the conditional, described in the following subsections, can be grouped as follows:
The conditional mood corresponds to expressions with “would” in English in a main clause. For example, sanoisin means “I would say”. Like the English “would” expression, the Finnish conditional may express hypothetical conditionality, but it is also used to express other things than conditions, such as hesitation, uncertainty, or politeness.
In spoken language, questions and especially requests are very often “softened” one way or another. The conditional is one of the ways. For example, “Could I have the salt, please” can be expressed as Saisinko suolan? (literally, “Would I get salt?”), which is softer than Saanko suolan? (literally, “Do I get salt?”). A polite request to get something can also use the auxiliary verb voida (to be able), much as in English, either in the indicative or in the conditional, e.g. Voinko saada suolan? or Voisinko saada suolan?
When asking someone to do something, the conditional is very common; see Softening the imperative. Instead of Sulje ovi (which would more or less correspond to “Close the door” without “please”), we say Sulkisitko oven, which is formally a question “Would you close the door?”
For verbs expressing obligation or necessity, conditional forms are milder than indicative forms. For example, sinun pitää corresponds to “you must” or “you shall”, whereas sinun pitäisi corresponds to “you should”.
The conditional can also be used in suggestions. They can be polite, as in Mitä jos tavattaisiin illalla? (How about meeting in the evening? Literally: What if one met in the evening?). A request like Olisitte jo hiljaa! (You should be quiet at last!) is somewhat aggressive, but still more polite than a direct command Olkaa jo hiljaa!
Most of the softening described above is just normal politeness, without reflecting uncertainty or conditionality. In expressions like Voisin tulla käymään luonasi (I could visit you), the use of voisin instead of voin might be seen as implying a condition: if you want me to. However, it can also be seen as just softening a statement, from a statement of what I can do to a suggestion about what I could do, encourageing a response of some kind.
The conditional may express uncertainty in phrases like Sanoisin, että (I would say that) or Uskoisin, että (I would believe that). They can also be interpreted as mannerisms for just expressing that what follows is an opinion.
In questions, conditional mode often means that something is suggested rather than just asked. For example, Voisiko se olla kotka? (Could it be an eagle?) suggests a possible answer to an implied question about an observation, rather than a literal question. The question Olisikohan se kotka? (I wonder if it is an eagle) is similar but somewhat stronger suggests an answer.
In shopping, saying Ostaisinkohan tämän to an accompanying person normally means “I wonder if I should buy this?” rather the literally conditional “Would I buy this?” After making a decision, it is normal to use the conditional as in Ottaisin tämän puhelimen (I’d like to buy this phone), which literally means “I would take this phone”. Using the indicative otan instead of ottaisin is possible, too, but somewhat abrupt.
In an “if” clause with a condition that is not expected to be fulfilled, English uses the past tense (e.g, “if I watched”), whereas Finnish uses the conditional, e.g. jos katsoisin. In the associated main clause, English uses “would”, whereas Finnish uses the conditional there, too. Compare:
Thus, when the conditional is used as relating to conditions, it usually relates to unreal (hypothetical) conditions. However, the conditional can be used, for “softening” effects, when the condition is real and even expected or hoped to be fulfilled. For example, when inviting someone, we can add Olisin iloinen, jos tulisit (I would be glad if you came).
The conditional mood can be used to express a wish or desire, which is usually more or less unrealistic or improbable. Examples:
The conditional is used in a subclause that starts with jotta or että and expresses the purpose of the action described in the main clause. Example: Kiipesin ylemmäs, jotta näkisin paremmin (I climbed higher in order to see better).
Instead of such expressions, intentional clause equivalents can be used, e.g. Kiipesin ylemmäs nähdäkseni paremmin.
The conditional has no simple past tense form. Instead, we use the verb olla in the conditional and the past participle of the main verb, e.g. olisin syönyt (I would have eaten). In the 4th person, the passive participle is used, e.g. Tämä olisi voitu tehdä paremmin (This could have been done better).
In conditional expressions, the conditional is used when it is known that the condition was not fulfilled, e.g. Jos olisin syönyt maapähkinöitä, olisin saanut allergiareaktion (If I had eaten peanuts, I would have got an allergic reaction).