How to get dressed in Finnish

Talking about getting dressed is surprisingly complicated in Finnish, or at least it is tricky for me in English. Luckily I had a Canadian friend over to help me with this! :)

Pukeutua (pukeudun, pukeuduin, pukeutunut) - to get dressed or to wear

 This is an intransitive verb, so it doesn't get an object.

• Älä pukeudu vielä. - Don't get dressed yet. 
• Osaatko pukeutua itse? - Do you know how to dress yourself?
• Kuinka niihin juhliin pitäisi pukeutua? - How should one dress for the party?
• Miksi sinä pukeudut kuin teini?  - Why do you dress like a teenager?
• Aiotko taas pukeutua naiseksi? - Are you going to wear a woman's outfit again?
• Kuka oli pukeutunut parhaiten? - Who was dressed the best?

Pukea (puen, puin, pukenut) - to put on clothes or to dress a person

• Pue jo se takki! - Put your jacket on already! 
• Älä pue niitä kenkiä vielä. - Don't put those shoes on yet.
• Minä voin pukea sinut. - I can dress you.

Laittaa (päälle) - to put something on

• Mitä sä laitat päälle tänä iltana? - What are you going to put on this evening?
• Haluatko sä laittaa hameen vai housut? - Do you want to put on a skirt or pants?
• Sä et voi laittaa tuota hametta! - You can't put that skirt on!

To wear something is usually just having something on, pitää or käyttää.

• Mitä sillä oli päällä? - What was he wearing? What did he have on?
• Oliko sillä hienot vaatteet? - Was he wearing fancy clothes? Did he have nice clothes?
• Aiotko sä oikeasti pitää tuota hattua? - Are you really going to wear that hat?
• Sä et voi käyttää noita farkkuja enää! - You can't wear those jeans anymore!

Sopia (sovin, sovin, sopinut)  is to suit, to fit and to match.

• Tuo sopii sinulle tosi hyvin. - That suits you really well. That looks good on you. (Yes, you can also say Tuo pukee sinua.)
• Tämä paita ei sovi näiden housujen kanssa. - This shirt doesn't fit with these pants. 
• Sopiiko tämä takki tämän hameen kanssa? - Does this jacket match with this skirt?

Mahtua (mahdun, mahduin, mahtunut) is to fit, to be a suitable size.

• Tämä ei mahdu minulle enää! - This doesn't fit me any more! (In Finnish, you can also just blame the piece of clothing and say Tämä on jäänyt minulle pieneksi. - This has "stayed" small for me.)

About the author of Random Finnish lesson: 

My name is Hanna Männikkölahti. I am a professional Finnish teacher who gives private online lessons and simplifies books into easy Finnish. Please read more in www.linktr.ee/hannamannikkolahti and follow this blog, if you want to be the first one to know when I post something new.