kengät
The Finnish word for shoes is kengät.
kengät refers to footwear worn to protect and comfort the human foot.
What does it mean word for word?
The word is the plural form of the singular noun kenkä, which means shoe. The plural is formed by adding the suffix -t to the stem.
How does it change in a sentence?
The singular form is kenkä. The plural form kengät is used for shoes and can function as a nominative plural or a partitive plural depending on the context of the sentence.
When do people say it?
In Finland, it is standard social etiquette to take your shoes off when entering a home.
Did you know?
- The word kenkä is used in the idiomatic expression kenkä puristaa, which literally means 'the shoe pinches' but is used to describe feeling constrained or uncomfortable in a situation.
- The word kenkä is a cognate with the Estonian word king, reflecting the shared ancestral roots of the Finnic languages.
- In Finnish culture, the act of removing kengät is so ingrained that many homes have a dedicated kenkäkaappi or shoe cabinet specifically for this purpose in the entryway.
Examples in context
- Mis mun kengät o?Where are my shoes?This is useful for asking about the location of your kengät.Tatoeba #4149795 by Silja, translation #3820862 by CK
- Kengät on tehty nahasta.The shoes are made of leather.This demonstrates how to describe the material that kengät are made of.Tatoeba #4804098 by Orava, translation #62989 by shekitten
- Ota kengät pois, kiitos.Please take off your shoes.This is a polite way to ask someone to take off their kengät.Tatoeba #6592756 by Orava, translation #18097 by CK
- Minulla on uudet kengät.I have new shoes.
- Tarvitsen mukavat kengät juhliin.I need comfortable shoes for the party.
- Voisinko saada nämä kengät kokoa 38?Could I get these shoes in size 38?
- Minulla on lämpimät tossut talveksi.I have warm slippers for winter.
- Milloin viimeksi puhdistit kengät?When was the last time you cleaned your shoes?
- 64 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Antti and Emma are getting ready to leave the house.
- AnttiMissä ovat sinun uudet kengät?Where are your new shoes?
- EmmaNe ovat eteisessä.They are in the hallway.
- AnttiLaita kengät jalhaan nopeasti.Put your shoes on quickly.
- EmmaOdotahan, etsin vielä toista kenkää.Wait, I am still looking for the other shoe.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
