Verbs are conjugated according to person and number. Here is the verb olla, "to be", in its six different present tense forms:
Finnish
English
olen
(I) am
olet
(you) are
on
(s/he, it) is
olemme
(we) are
olette
(you all) are
ovat
(they) are
Finnish makes a distinction between the singular and the plural you, that is, whether the discussion is about one or several people.
Sinä olet naimisissa.
You are married.
(you are a person who is married)
Aino ja Otso, te olette naimisissa.
Aino and Otso, you are married.
(you are people who are married)
In Standard Finnish, subject pronouns in the nominative are optional in the 1st and 2nd person. They need to be included in the 3rd person (hän, he).
(Me) olemme naimisissa.
We are married.
(Te) olette naimisissa.
You (all) are married.
He ovat naimisissa.
They are married.
Verbs can be conjugated in several different ways, depending on the verb type, but the endings are always the same.
Pronoun
Verb ending
minä
-n
sinä
-t
hän
-VV (long vowel)
me
-mme
te
-tte
he
-vVt (v + vowel + t)
If the 1st infinitive of a verb ends in two vowels, the stem is formed by cutting out the final vowel.
to sing: laulaa -> laula-
to dance: tanssia -> tanssi-
to sit: istua -> istu-
Then you add the endings. In the 3rd person singular (with hän), you double the final letter in the stem. In the 3rd person plural (with he), you add the ending -vat, if the stem has a, o, or u in it.
Pronoun
Verb
English
minä
laula-n
I am singing, I sing
sinä
laula-t
you are singing, you sing
hän
laula-a
s/he is singing, s/he sings
me
laula-mme
we are singing, we sing
te
laula-tte
you (all) are singing, you (all) sing
he
laula-vat
they are singing, they sing
The question particle -ko is added AFTER the personal endings.
tanssi + i + ko = tanssiikolaula + t + ko = laulatko
It is rare for a question to consist of only a verb, so using a personal pronoun with all forms is recommended, if there are no other words in the sentence.
Tanssiiko hän?
Is s/he dancing?
Laulatko sinä?
Do you sing?
The continuous form of the English verb, the "-ing form", is usually the most natural translation, but the form without -ing, expressing repetitive action, can sometimes be the better option. Often, both are possible, depending on the context.
Istumme yhdessä.
We are sitting together.
The continuous form sounds better above. However, "We sit together" would be correct as an answer to a question about repetitive actions, like "What do we do on Sundays?"
Istumme usein yhdessä.
We often sit together.
The form expressing repetitive action is the most likely translation with sentences like the one above, because the sentence includes an adverb expressing frequency, "often".
He tanssivat.
They are dancing (right now)./They dance (as a hobby, etc).
Finnish often focuses on whether things are complete or incomplete. The sentences "They are dancing" and "They dance" both refer to incomplete, unfinished action. This is why you can translate them with the same sentence.
To put it shortly, the way ENGLISH grammar works in the given context determines whether the -ing form is used or not. Finnish is not particularly interested in ings.
Like a dog with two tails
Finnish has two adjectives that are best translated with the word "happy". A dog that jumps excitedly up and down when you return home after a long day at work is iloinen. A dog that lies relaxed next to you after his dinner while you scratch his neck is onnellinen. The first word is used to describe joyous and cheerful happiness that is easy to notice. The second word is used to describe happiness that is so deep that you can feel it in your bones. Of course it is possible to be both at the same time, but just because you are onnellinen does not necessarily mean that you are iloinen, or vice versa. A person can also pretend to be iloinen, but you cannot fake being onnellinen. Dogs, naturally, are incapable of such deception.
Musti on hiljainen ja onnellinen.
Musti is quiet and happy.
Tämä iloinen vauva nauraa.
This happy baby is laughing.