When discussing colors in Finnish, it's very useful to know how to use the verb maalata. This verb means 'to paint' and can be applied to many situations, from painting a wall to painting a picture. For instance, you could say Haluan maalata seinän siniseksi, meaning 'I want to paint the wall blue.' Or, if you're talking about art, Taiteilija maalaa kauniin maiseman translates to 'The artist paints a beautiful landscape.' It's a straightforward verb that you'll find yourself using often.
Aussprachehilfe
- Mispronouncing the 'aa' as a short 'a' sound.
- Not rolling the 'r' sound (if applicable to the speaker's accent).
Beispiele nach Niveau
Taiteilija maalasi upean maiseman kankaalle, käyttäen kirkkaita värejä ja tarkkoja yksityiskohtia.
The artist painted a magnificent landscape on the canvas, using bright colors and precise details.
The verb 'maalata' is in the past tense (imperfekt), and 'kankaalle' is in the allative case, indicating 'onto the canvas'.
Hän aikoo maalata vanhat keittiökaapit valkoiseksi, jotta tila näyttäisi valoisammalta ja modernimmalta.
She intends to paint the old kitchen cabinets white, so that the space would look brighter and more modern.
'Maalata' is in its infinitive form, used with 'aikoo' (intends to). 'Valkoiseksi' is in the translative case, indicating a change of state to 'white'.
Lapset nauttivat seinien maalaamisesta sormiväreillä, vaikka se teki melkoisen sotkun.
The children enjoyed painting the walls with finger paints, even though it made quite a mess.
'Maalaamisesta' is the third infinitive in the elative case, functioning as 'from painting' or 'of painting'. 'Seinien' is the genitive plural of 'seinä' (wall).
Ennen kuin voit maalata, sinun täytyy puhdistaa pinta huolellisesti ja tasoittaa epätasaisuudet.
Before you can paint, you must clean the surface carefully and smooth out the irregularities.
'Maalata' is in the infinitive form, used after 'voit' (you can). 'Puhdistaa' and 'tasoittaa' are also infinitives, indicating actions to be performed.
Ulkoseinien maalaus on iso projekti, joka vaatii hyvää sääennustetta ja paljon aikaa.
Painting the outer walls is a big project, which requires a good weather forecast and a lot of time.
'Maalaus' is a noun derived from 'maalata', meaning 'the act of painting' or 'a painting job'. 'Ulkoseinien' is the genitive plural of 'ulkoseinä' (outer wall).
Hän pyysi minua auttamaan häntä maalaamaan uudet ikkunapuitteet ruskeaksi.
He asked me to help him paint the new window frames brown.
'Maalaamaan' is the third infinitive in the illative case, indicating purpose or direction. 'Ruskeaksi' is in the translative case, indicating 'into brown'.
Monet taiteilijat käyttävät öljyvärejä maalatakseen realistisia muotokuvia ja asetelmia.
Many artists use oil paints to paint realistic portraits and still lifes.
'Maalatakseen' is the third infinitive in the instructive case, expressing purpose ('in order to paint').
Muista suojata lattiat ja huonekalut ennen kuin aloitat maalaustyön, jotta vältyt roiskeilta.
Remember to protect the floors and furniture before you start the painting job, so that you avoid splashes.
'Maalaustyön' is the genitive form of 'maalaustyö' (painting job), used after 'aloitat' (you start). 'Maalaus' here is part of a compound word.
Wird oft verwechselt mit
To draw. This is different from 'maalata' (to paint).
To color in. This is also different from 'maalata'.
To make art. While painting can be art, 'tehdä taidetta' is a broader term.
Leicht verwechselbar
Many English speakers confuse 'maalata' with the idea of painting a picture, but it can also refer to painting a wall or a house.
'Maalata' is a general verb for painting, regardless of the object.
Minä maalaan seinän. (I paint the wall.)
Similar to 'maalata', 'maalari' refers to a painter, but can be misunderstood as only an artist.
'Maalari' can be an artist, a house painter, or anyone who paints.
Hän on hyvä maalari. (He is a good painter.)
This word has multiple meanings and can be confusing. It can mean paint (the substance) or a goal (in sports).
Context is key. 'Maali' refers to the substance you paint with, or the target in a game.
Tämä maali on sinistä. (This paint is blue.) Joukkue teki maalin. (The team scored a goal.)
While 'maalaus' is straightforwardly a painting (the artwork), some might confuse it with the act of painting itself.
'Maalaus' is the finished product, the artwork.
Tämä maalaus on kaunis. (This painting is beautiful.)
Literally 'paint pen', some might not immediately grasp what it refers to.
'Maalikynä' is a marker or a paint pen.
Tarvitsen maalikynän. (I need a paint pen.)
Häufig gestellte Fragen
10 FragenMaalata means 'to paint'. It's a common verb you'll use a lot.
Here's the present tense:
Minä maalaan (I paint)
Sinä maalaat (You paint)
Hän maalaa (He/She paints)
Me maalaamme (We paint)
Te maalaatte (You all paint)
He maalaavat (They paint)
Yes, absolutely. You can say 'maalata taloa' (to paint a house) or 'maalata taulua' (to paint a picture).
The past tense (imperfect) is quite regular:
Minä maalasin (I painted)
Sinä maalasit (You painted)
Hän maalasi (He/She painted)
And so on.
A common one is 'maalata seinää' (to paint a wall). You might also hear 'maalata kuvaa' (to paint a picture).
You'd say 'Minä tykkään maalata'. Remember that 'tykätä' takes the illative case, but with verbs, you use the basic form.
Maalata is 'to paint' (using paint, brushes, etc.). Piirtää is 'to draw' (using pencils, pens).
Not really in that sense. While makeup involves 'painting' your face, for makeup we usually use 'meikata' (to put on makeup).
You use the negative verb 'ei' and the stem of 'maalata' without the 'a' or 'ä' ending:
Minä en maalaa (I don't paint)
Sinä et maalaa (You don't paint)
Hän ei maalaa (He/She doesn't paint)
Sure. 'Lapset maalaavat kuvia.' (The children are painting pictures.) Or, 'Isä maalasi talon kesällä.' (Father painted the house in the summer.)
Teste dich selbst 36 Fragen
This sentence means 'I paint a painting.' The verb 'maalata' (to paint) is conjugated for 'minä' (I).
This sentence means 'He/She paints the wall.' The verb 'maalata' (to paint) is conjugated for 'hän' (he/she).
This sentence means 'We paint the house.' The verb 'maalata' (to paint) is conjugated for 'me' (we).
This sentence means 'I should paint the walls.' The structure is 'Subject (Minun) + modal verb (pitäisi) + infinitive (maalata) + object (seinät).'
This sentence means 'He/She is painting a picture.' The structure uses the progressive aspect: 'Subject (Hän) + olla (on) + -massa/mässä form of verb (maalaamassa) + object (taulua).'
This sentence means 'The children want to paint pictures.' The structure is 'Subject (Lapset) + verb (haluavat) + infinitive (maalata) + object (kuvia).'
Taiteilija aikoo ___ suuren muotokuvan.
Here, 'aikoo' (is going to) requires the basic form of the verb, the infinitive. 'Maalata' is the infinitive form of 'to paint'.
Ennen kuin aloitat, varmista, että sinulla on tarpeeksi maalia ___ seiniä.
The suffix '-kse-' indicates purpose, 'in order to'. So, 'maalataksesi' means 'in order to paint'.
Talon ulkoseinät tarvitsevat uuden kerroksen maalia; ne on ___ pian.
The '-ttava' form indicates necessity or obligation, meaning 'must be painted' or 'needs to be painted'. This is often used in passive structures.
Lapset nauttivat paljon, kun he pääsevät ___ sormiväreillä.
The illative form of the verbal noun is used here after 'pääsevät' (they get to), indicating the action they get to do. 'Maalaamaan' means 'to painting' or 'for painting'.
Olen juuri saanut valmiiksi taulun ___ useita kuukausia.
The past participle active in the first infinitive with the possessive suffix '-ni' ('maalattuani') indicates an action completed by the speaker before another action. It means 'after I had painted'.
Huomasin hänen innostuneen ___ maisemia heti loman jälkeen.
The elative case of the verbal noun ('maalaamisesta') is used after 'innostuneen' (got excited about), indicating what he got excited about. 'Maalaamisesta' means 'about painting'.
The artist painted the portrait as a commission.
The children got to paint with finger paints in kindergarten.
He intends to paint the exterior walls of the house next summer.
Read this aloud:
Voisitko maalata tämän pöydän uudelleen, se on hieman naarmuuntunut.
Focus: maalata
Du hast gesagt:
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Read this aloud:
Millä värillä haluaisit maalata makuuhuoneen seinät?
Focus: maalata
Du hast gesagt:
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Read this aloud:
Maalaaminen on rentouttava harrastus, eikö totta?
Focus: Maalaaminen
Du hast gesagt:
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Taiteilija aikoo ___ suuren muraalin vanhan rakennuksen seinälle.
Here, 'aikoo' (is going to) requires the basic form of the verb, which is the infinitive 'maalata'.
Hän on ___ koko kesän vain abstraktia taidetta, kokeillen uusia tekniikoita.
The perfect tense (on + past participle) is needed here to express an action that started in the past and continues or has an effect in the present. 'Maalannut' is the past participle of 'maalata'.
Vaikka sää oli huono, lapset halusivat yhä ___ ulkona lempiväreillään.
The verb 'halusivat' (wanted) requires the infinitive form of the following verb, 'maalata'.
Jos minä ___ maisemakuvan, valitsisin kirkkaita, eloisia sävyjä.
This is a conditional sentence ('Jos minä...'), which requires the conditional mood for the verb, hence 'maalaisin' (I would paint).
Remontin jälkeen meidän täytyy ___ koko talo uudelleen, mikä on suuri urakka.
The phrase 'täytyy' (must) is followed by the basic form of the verb, the infinitive 'maalata'.
Hän vietti tunteja keskittyen jokaiseen yksityiskohtaan, ikään kuin ___ tunteensa kankaalle.
The phrase 'ikään kuin' (as if) often introduces a hypothetical or counterfactual situation, which typically uses the conditional mood, 'maalaisi' (would paint).
This sentence structure reflects a common Finnish word order where the subject 'Hän' (He/She) is followed by the auxiliary verb 'on' and the past participle 'maalannut' (painted). The adverbial phrase 'mestarin tarkkuudella' (with master's precision) precedes the object 'muotokuvan' (a portrait).
This complex sentence begins with a subordinate clause ('Vaikka sade uhkasi keskeyttää työn' - Although the rain threatened to interrupt the work) followed by the main clause. In the main clause, the subject 'hän' (he/she) is followed by the verb 'jatkoi' (continued), and then the object phrase 'talon ulkoseinien maalaamista' (painting the outer walls of the house), ending with the adverb 'sinnikkäästi' (persistently).
This sentence features a complex object structure 'sielun syvyyksiin ulottuvan teoksen' (a work reaching into the depths of the soul) preceding a relative clause 'joka puhuttelisi katsojaa vuosikymmentenkin päästä' (which would speak to the viewer even decades later). The verb 'pyrki maalata' (sought to paint) introduces the intention.
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