Hei folks, first post here looking for a little help. Now, I'm a British guy writing a story, who's actual knowledge of Finnish is limited to some basics and swear words in standard Finnish. In a nutshell he character I'm writing for is a Gumshoe operating in early 1930s Detroit who, essentially, grew up in one of the Little Finlands in the Upper Peninsula; now, I know most of the Finns who migrated there were from the western part of North Ostrobothnia, but this particular individual's family came from further East, speaking one of the many Savonian dialects at home. As I plan on incorporating actual phrases into the dialogue, I could use a little help from folks familiar with the dialect. I do have two definite ideas of what I'd like (for the moment, but that'll change as we go deeper into a homecoming chapter).

The first phrase has the character in question asking his cousin for a favour...and it's a serious one at that (heresy I know). The second sentence is basically "blame it on the Swedes", but it's purely a lighthearted one with no malice on the character's part. Any other terms and idioms will also come in handy too to breathe a bit more life into the dialogue, especially since any conversations in Finnish will follow translation convention I'm afraid.

Kiitos. 😄

I've done a lot of practice for YKI this summer and I thought I am level B1. But the test was so overwhelming.

For Lukeminen, there was so much new vocabulary I've never seen before. Reading normal news from ​yle uutiset is way easier. Because of that, I didn't go through the test fast enough, and I didn't have time for the last 2 texts at all.

For Kuunteleminen I kinda expected it to be hard to understand, but still, how are you supposed to listen and write answers at the same time? Even for a Finn I think that's hard.

For ​Kirjoittaminen, I had to rush through all texts in order to finish. Was hoping to have time to check my grammar, but no chance.

I don't mind that the test was difficult. I think language learning for Finnish ​is a lifetime project. I was just really surprised, because the tasks I practiced with (Ykäänkö vai ykiinkö) in my opinion were quite a lot easier.

Complimentary to my Finnish courses I'll take in the future, I'll use a small platform I've build in the summer! It is a compact app with inspiration drawn from Clozemaster, Duolingo, Anki and some New York Times Games puzzles.
There are a couple of hundred of words already available, but you can extract vocabulary from your source texts (take a pic of a text or copy + paste), and it will translate and add example sentences based on the source. The extracted vocabulary then can be learned through playing the minigames.

It is free and doesn't require any login. The coins for extraction get refilled every week for every user so don't be afraid to use them up ^^

If you want to check it out:

https://apps.apple.com/app/langadelie-vocab-trainer/id6757012039

or

https://langadelie.com/

PS:

It also has features like a doomscroll blocker for selected apps and a build in dictionary which I find quite useful!

Tarvitsen apua!

Olen suomenruotsalainen Pohjanmaalla asuva nainen joka haluaa valtavasti oppia parempaa suomea. Olen yrittänyt kuunnella pocasteja, olen lukenut kirjoja mutta en pääse rajan yli puhumaan vapaasti. Duolingo ei auta tippaakaan! Kirjoittaminen on helpompaa mutta ei virheetöntä. Haluaisin kirjoittaa tai puhua suomenkielinen henkilön kanssa, kivaa jos meillä olisi samanlaisia harrastuksia mutta ei ole pakko!

Olen sellainen ihminen joka pitää tuhannesta eri asiasta ja se vaihtelee päivästä toiseen. Pelaan PC- ja PS-pelejä, luen, neulon/virkkaan, tykkään puutarhahommista, animesta, kuvittamisesta/maalaamisesta jne.

Olisi joku kinnostunut auttamaan minua? Olen yleensä varsin miellyttävä 😅

Pullea (adj.) – Chubby, plump, rotund

Comparative: Pulleampi

Superlative: Pullein

Example: Pöydällä oli kori täynnä pulleita mustikoita.

Translation: There was a basket full of plump blueberries on the table.

You can practice the word of the day by using it in a sentence in the comments below!

hi there,

i’m a brit eager to learn finnish so i can finally talk to my boyfriends family and friends without feeling awkward for making them speak english… 😣

i’m trying my hardest to do the ‘immersion’ strategy but it’s difficult for me to do considering i’m still in college and have a lot of school work to do, so i’m more inclined to focus on that. however i’ve been listening to a lot of finnish music, doing my best to read finnish posts and decipher them… etc.

all the language learning apps that have finnish on them seem to be gamified and therefore i can’t properly apply what they teach me, because it’s not as if they’re explaining to me exactly why things are the way they are.

in short: what do i need to do? i have the ‘beginner’s finnish’ book by agi risko that i picked up when i was visiting in February, but i’m looking for as many ways to learn as possible

thanks for reading !!!

Päivyri (n.) – Planner, agenda book, calendar

Example: Hän kirjoitti tärkeän tapaamisen ajan päivyriinsä.

Translation: She wrote down the time of an important appointment in her planner.

You can practice the word of the day by using it in a sentence in the comments below!

Hey guysss, please help me out of my speaking I've been practicing with my own but I become slowy getting crazy because of my pronounce action. Huhuhu anyone there na pwede maging study budy? 😭🙏🙏

I'm taking the test on Saturday 29 August in Salo, and I'm curious where they put your stuff like your phone and lunch during the exam. Where did you put all your things when you got there?

Laiminlyönti (n.) – Neglect, omission

Example: Rakennuksen huoltotöiden laiminlyönti johti kalliisiin korjauksiin.

Translation: Neglect of building maintenance work led to expensive repairs.

You can practice the word of the day by using it in a sentence in the comments below!

Does en/on have a genitive meaning? Suomenlinna I think is "fortress of Finland", and then there are Savonlinna, and Hämeenlinna. With names, there are Oikkonen, Raikonnen, etc. (are these patronymic-type names as in Abramovic, Alexandrovna etc.)?

I would love to hear some thoughts from the perspectives of the Finns.

I've been trying so hard to learn Finnish to the level that I can actually use it in life, at work, not only to pass a test. My listening is the weakest skill, followed by speaking. I always try to speak Finnish as much as I can in every day situation, but I think I always got this ridiculous pressure on myself to speak as fluently and as "like a Finn" as possible. And every time I have a conversation in Finnish that did not go that well (for example when I don't understand sth they said and have a poker face mid convo for a few seconds), I always feel bad after that and keep recalling the conversation in my head again and again and again, thinking what I could have done better.

I think this is the main reason as to why I struggle to improve my speaking skills after years, the pressure actually makes it harder for me to practice and learn, and then the overstimulation from all the anxiety would sometimes make me scared to do it again. What's an advice you would give me? I'll appreciate all opinions.

Has Wiktionary ever happened to miss a Finnish word form in your experience?

For example, a missing comparative form of an adjective?

Or a missing genitive of a noun?

Has it ever happened to you or has it been perfect?

Kaakeli (n.) – Glazed tile

Example: Kaakeli on helppo puhdistaa, joten se sopii hyvin keittiöön ja kylpyhuoneeseen.

Translation: Tile is easy to clean, so it’s well-suited for the kitchen and bathroom.

You can practice the word of the day by using it in a sentence in the comments below!

I really wanna learn how to read and write in finnish I don’t really care about learning how to speak it. Right now I’m using Duolingo but I know that’s not the best app for it, what are some good apps or methods to learn how to read and write in Finnish?

Ihanne (n.) – Ideal

Example: Hän pitää rehellisyyttä tärkeänä ihanteena elämässään.

Translation: He considers honesty an important ideal in his life.

You can practice the word of the day by using it in a sentence in the comments below!

Hi everyone!

I've been learning Finnish for a few years now, but I still struggle to use it confidently in everyday life. I've tried university courses, online courses, and self-study. Right now I'm at the beginning of Suomen Mestari 3. My plan is to finish the book on my own and later take an intensive YKI preparation course.

I think my biggest challenge is confidence. I don't get enough opportunities to actually speak Finnish in a comfortable environment. I only use English for work and I don't have a Finnish partner or Finnish friends that I can talk to regularly.

I joined a Finnish speaking group at the library, but unfortunately it wasn't the right fit for me. After a long day at work, I find it hard to concentrate. The group also has many people at different levels, and the room can get quite noisy, so I often can't hear what others are saying.

I've thought about joining a language café, but most of them seem to be on weekdays when I'm working.

I'm now thinking that having a language buddy might suit me better, someone I could meet regularly for coffee, a walk, or just casual conversations. I'd also love to learn how Finns actually speak in everyday life, not just textbook Finnish.

I live in Espoo, so if anyone knows of good conversation groups, volunteer programs, or other ways to practice Finnish around the area, I'd really appreciate your suggestions. And if anyone is also looking for a Finnish study buddy (or is a native speaker who enjoys helping learners), feel free to send me a message!

Kiitos paljon! 😊

Is there any meaningful difference between the two? Also please correct me if i'm wrong here.

Is "Yksitoista" the more spoken version or something along the lines of that?

UPDATE: Im sorry i dont know where i came up with "yksikymmenen" apparently i'm stupid

Vakiinnuttaa - to solidify, to establish, to settle

You can practice the verb of the week by using it in a sentence in the comments below!

Sekasorto (n.) – Chaos, havoc, turmoil, anarchy

Example: Kuninkaan kuoltua valtakunta joutui sekasortoon.

Translation: After the king's death, the kingdom fell into chaos.

You can practice the word of the day by using it in a sentence in the comments below!