kunnes

Until (Kunnes)

Level 3

Use kunnes to link two clauses when one action continues up to the point the second action starts. It translates to 'until' and requires a comma to separate it from the main clause.

How It Works

The conjunction kunnes is the standard way to say 'until' when connecting two full sentences (clauses).

1. Usage with Clauses
Unlike the English 'until', which can be used with both nouns ('until Monday') and verbs ('until I leave'), Finnish kunnes is strictly a conjunction for clauses. This means it must be followed by a finite (conjugated) verb. Because Finnish allows dropping the subject pronoun in the first and second person, the subject is not always explicitly written (e.g., kunnes palaan).

2. Emphatic Alternative: Siihen asti kun
A common and slightly more emphatic alternative to kunnes is the phrase siihen asti kun (or siihen saakka kun). While kunnes is concise, this longer construction literally means 'to that point when' and is very frequent in both speech and writing. For example: Odotan tässä siihen asti, kun hän tulee. (I will wait here until he comes.)

3. Punctuation
In written Finnish, you must use a comma to separate the kunnes clause from the main clause. If kunnes introduces the second part of the sentence, the comma goes before it. If the kunnes clause starts the sentence, the comma follows the entire clause.

4. Tense and Meaning
It indicates that the action in the first part of the sentence lasts right up to the moment the second action begins. Even when talking about the future, Finnish typically uses the present tense in the kunnes clause.

5. Kunnes vs. Vasta
If you want to say 'not until' in the sense of 'only at a certain time' (e.g., 'I didn't leave until five'), Finnish uses the adverb vasta rather than kunnes. Kunnes focuses on the duration leading up to the point, while vasta focuses on the lateness of the point itself.

Examples (4)

  1. Odotan tässä, kunnes sade lakkaa.

    I will wait here until the rain stops.

    Word by Word: I wait here, until rain stops.

    The main clause 'Odotan tässä' describes a continuous action that ends when the 'kunnes' clause event occurs.

  2. Jatkamme työtä, kunnes olemme valmiita.

    We will continue the work until we are ready.

    Word by Word: We continue work, until we are ready.

    Note the comma before 'kunnes' and the use of the present tense for a future goal.

  3. Pysyimme sisällä, kunnes aurinko tuli esiin.

    We stayed inside until the sun came out.

    Word by Word: We stayed inside, until sun came out.

    Here 'kunnes' is used in the past tense to show the end point of a past state.

  4. Lue tätä kirjaa, kunnes nukahdat.

    Read this book until you fall asleep.

    Word by Word: Read this book, until you fall asleep.

    The present tense is used here to indicate a future event that marks the end of the reading.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'kunnes' with a noun instead of a clause.

    Odotan kunnes maanantai.
    Odotan maanantaihin asti.

    Kunnes only connects to clauses (containing a conjugated verb). For nouns like 'Monday', use the illative case with asti.

  • Forgetting the comma between the clauses.

    Menen kotiin kunnes aurinko laskee.
    Menen kotiin, kunnes aurinko laskee.

    In Finnish, subordinate clauses must be separated from the main clause by a comma. If the 'kunnes' clause comes first, the comma follows it: 'Kunnes aurinko laskee, menen kotiin.'

  • Confusing 'kunnes' (until) with 'kun' (when).

    Odotan, kun hän tulee.
    Odotan, kunnes hän tulee.

    'Kun' means 'when' (a point in time), while 'kunnes' means 'until' (the limit of a duration). Using 'kun' here implies you wait at the moment he arrives, rather than waiting for the duration leading up to it.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

kunnesLevel 3Until (Kunnes)

Learn This First

To understand 'kunnes' (until), you need to be familiar with how Finnish handles temporal subordinate clauses using 'kun'. Since 'kunnes' often describes the duration of an action leading up to a specific point in the past, knowledge of the past tense (imperfect) and basic sentence structure is essential.

Words in This Pattern

kunnes