Making a Finnish verb into a noun

Making verbal nouns with the ending minen is quite simple and useful to know.

• Leipominen on kiva harrastus. - Baking is a nice hobby.
• Opiskeleminen on ihanaa! - Studying is wonderful!

How to do it?

1. Take a verb.  > leipoa, opiskella (to bake, to study)
2. Make the third person plural form. > he leipovat, he opiskelevat  (they bake, they study)
3. (Notice that verb types 3,4 and 6 might have a consonant change.)
4. Drop the ending vat in order to get the stem. > leipo-, opiskele-
5. Add minen. > leipominen, opiskeleminen (baking, studying)
6. Ta-daa, you have a verbal noun!

Pay attention to the word order

It seems relatively easy in the beginning, but the more you want to say, the crazier grammar you'll encounter. First of all, notice the flipped word order:

• Syödä ulkona: Ulkona syöminen on kallista. - Eating out is expensive. 
• Nukkua teltassa: Teltassa nukkuminen on hauskaa. - Sleeping in a tent is fun. 
• Asua kämppiksen kanssa: Kämppiksen kanssa asuminen on mukavaa. - Living with a flatmate is nice. 
• Juosta järven ympäri: Järven ympäri juokseminen kestää tunnin. - Running around the lake takes an hour. 

The object is now in genitive:

• Soittaa kitaraa: Kitaran soittaminen on helppoa. - Playing the guitar is easy.
• Saada opiskelupaikka: Opiskelupaikan saaminen on vaikeaa. - Getting a study place is difficult. 

Sometimes even in plural:

• Harjata hampaat: Hampaiden harjaaminen kestää vain kolme minuuttia.  - Brushing the teeth takes only three minutes.
• Tehdä muistiinpanoja: Muistiinpanojen tekeminen on tärkeää. - Taking notes is important.

The minen nouns belong to the category of words that end with nen. Partitive and elative cases are usually the confusing ones, so pay attention to these examples:

Partitive:

• Mä rakastan siivoamista! - I love cleaning! (siivoamis + ta)
• Mä inhoan imuroimista! - I hate vacuuming! (imuroimis + ta)
• Mä harrastan tanssimista. - I dance. Dancing is my hobby. (tanssimis + ta).

Elative:

• Mä  tykkään siivoamisesta. -  I  like cleaning. (siivoamise + sta)
• Mä en tykkää imuroimisesta. - I don't like vacuuming. (imuroimise + sta)
• Oletko kiinnostunut tanssimisesta? - Are you interested in dancing? (tanssimise + sta)

Notice that there are also other ways to turn verbs into nouns. (Scroll down to 7) Teonnimet to find out other possible endings. The minen one is the most productive of them all, and you can apply it to any Finnish verb.)

Kiitos, kun luit! Jos pidit postauksesta, voit jakaa sen eteenpäin.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to share it. 
– Hanna

Tilaa uutiskirjeeni - Subscribe to my newsletter 

www.privatefinnishlessons.com 

Baking a cake in Finnish

Here's a recipe for a really good and simple chocolate cake. I think the recipe is originally from a free postcard promoting Fazer chocolate. You can use any chocolate you want, and even experiment with different types of flour.

Make sure you have these:

• esiliina - an apron
• kattila tai mikroaaltouuni - a saucepan or a microwave oven
• kulho tai kaksi - a bowl or two
• veitsi - a knife
• vaaka - a scale (Unless you can read the Finnish butter packages.)
• mitta-astia - a measuring cup
• siivilä - a sieve (You can also survive just fine without it.)
• nuolija - a scraper
• sähkövatkain - an electric mixer
• kakkuvuoka - a cake form (Mine is round, with a diameter of 24 cm.)
• uuni - an oven
• hammastikku - a toothpick
• uunikinnas - an oven mitten
• kakkuvati - a cake plate
• kakkulapio - a cake server

These are the ingredients:

• 175 g (tummaa) suklaata - 175 g (dark) chocolate
• 175 g voita  - 175 g butter
• 4 munaa - 4 eggs
• 2 dl sokeria - 2 dl sugar
• 1 dl vehnäjauhoja - 1 dl wheat flour
• tomusokeria, karkkeja, marjoja, kukkia - mitä tahansa kakunkoristeeksi sopivaa! - powdered sugar, candies, berries, flowers - whatever you can use for decorating the cake!

Here's how to make the cake:

1. Sulata voi kattilassa tai mikroaaltouunissa. - Melt the butter in a saucepan or in the microwave oven.
2. Pilko suklaa ja sekoita se voihin. - Break up the chocolate and mix it together with the butter. 
3. Sekoita, kunnes suklaa on sulanut. - Stir until the chocolate is melted.
4. Vatkaa munat ja sokeri vaahdoksi. - Beat the eggs and sugar until it's thick foam.
5. Lisää voi-suklaaseos. - Stir in the melted butter and chocolate.
6. Lisää jauhot varovaisesti siivilän läpi. - Add the flour carefully through a sieve. 
7. Sekoita tasaiseksi. - Stir until smooth. 
8. Voitele kakkuvuoka. - Butter the cake form. 
9. Kaada kakkutaikina vuokaan. - Pour the cake batter into the cake form.
10. Paista 160 asteessa noin 50 minuuttia. - Bake in 160 degrees Celcius for approximately 50 minutes.
11. Voit kokeilla jo aikaisemmin hammastikulla, onko kakku kypsä. - You can check the doneness of the cake already earlier with a toothpick. 
12. Ota kakku pois uunista ja anna jäähtyä. - Take the cake out of the oven and let cool. 
13. Koristele kakku ihan miten haluat. - Decorate the cake as you wish. (My favourite is to put random toppings in different cups, sit down to read ladies' magazines and leave the decoration up to to my children.)

Onpa hyvää kakkua! - Man, this cake is good!

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. Follow this blog, if you want to be the first one to know when I post something new.  If you want to subscribe to my newsletter, you can do it here. 

Olet runo

You are a poem!

Go to www.oletruno.fi and type down your name. The machine will give you a poem about you in Finnish. If you like to compose your own poems, you'll enjoy searching for the perfect rhymes in Riimisanakirja.

Another fun thing right now is to find out which Finnish celebrity would be the most suitable summer boyfriend of summer girlfriend for you.

How to use the Finnish word 'jos'

Jos means if and it's used quite similarly as in English:

• Tulen, jos ehdin. - I'll come if I'll have time.
• Tulisin, jos minulla olisi rahaa. - I'd come if I had money.
• Tuletko, jos tilaan pitsaa? - Will you come if I'll order some pizza?
• Jos uskaltaisin, irtisanoutuisin töistä ja muuttaisin metsään. - If I dared, I'd quit my job and move to a forest. 

However, you shouldn't use jos in indirect questions:

• Tiedätkö, jos hän tulee? - Do you know if he will come?
• Haluaisin kysyä, jos on vielä mahdollista ilmoittautua kurssille. - I'd like to know if it's still possible to sign up for the course. 

Instead of saying jos, add ko or kö to the verb:

• Tiedätkö, tuleeko hän? - Do you know if he will come?
• Haluaisin kysyä, onko vielä mahdollista ilmoittautua kurssille. - I'd like to know if it's still possible to sign up for the course. 

I know that many Finnish learners and even some Finns use jos in indirect questions, probably because it is so common in many other languages..  but now you know better!

Related posts:

• Jo-words
• Conjunctions in Finnish
• How to use ETTÄ 

Kiitos, kun luit! Jos pidit postauksesta, voit jakaa sen eteenpäin.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to share it. 
– Hanna

Tilaa uutiskirjeeni - Subscribe to my newsletter

Wondering in Finnish

I wonder if you know how to wonder in Finnish. The verb to wonder is ihmetellä, but it is not really used in this structure. Instead, you'll need the enclitic participle -han or -hän. If you want to emphasize the question, put a question mark in the end. If you're just hesitating,  you can leave it out.

• Mitähän kello on?  - I wonder what time it is. 
• Olikohan se humalassa? - I wonder if he was drunk.
• Sataakohan juhannuksena lunta.. - I wonder if it will snow on Midsummer.. 
• Onkohan meillä munia? - I wonder if we have eggs.
• More about -han: Check out this excellent post by Uusi kielemme.

To add extra hesitation and wondering, add ko or kö after the question word.

• Mitäköhän kello on? - I wonder what time it is?
• Minneköhän se meni? - I wonder where he went.

My son (who was 5 when I first wrote this) doesn't really get these kinds of questions, and quite often gives me an irritated answer when I'm not expecting him to say anything. 

• Mitäköhän mä laittaisin tänään päälle. - I wonder what I would wear today.
• Missäköhän mun sukat on. - I wonder where my socks are. 
• Onkohan siellä kylmä. - I wonder if it's cold out there.
• En minä tiedä!! - I don't know!!

Here are some sentences with ihmetellä: 

• Mitä sinä ihmettelet? - What are you wondering about?
• Mä ihmettelen tätä puhelinlaskua. - I'm astonished by this phone bill. 
• Mä ihmettelin sen käytöstä. - I found his behaviour odd. 
• Älkää enää ihmetelkö sitä. - Don't spend your time on it any more. 

p.s. Ihme is a miracle. In Finnish, the tv show MacGyver is naturally called Ihmemies.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to share it. 
Kiitos, kun luit! Jos pidit postauksesta, voit jakaa sen eteenpäin.
– Hanna

How to use the Finnish word 'ihan'

Ihan is a tricky word because it means either quite or really. 

With positive or neutral words, ihan means quite, just. 

The most important thing is that you don't say ihan kiva, ihan hyvä or ihan kaunis when you really mean tosi kiva, tosi hyvä or todella kaunis.

• Se on ihan OK opettaja. - She's an OK teacher. 
• Se oli ihan kiva näytelmä. - It was a quite nice play.
• Mun isäpuoli on ihan mukava. - My stepfather is quite nice. 
• Mun tentti meni ihan hyvin. - My exam went just fine. 

With negative and super positive words, ihan means very, really, absolutely.

(If you are bored with ihan, you can also use aivan with negative and super positive words.)

• Se elokuva oli ihan mahtava! - The movie was absolutely awesome!
• Tämä on ihan uskomattoman hieno asia! - This is an unbelievably great thing!
• Tämä paita on ihan liian pieni. - This shirt is absolutely too small.
• Se mun deitti oli ihan kamala! - The person I met on a date was absolutely horrible! 

Ihan in vulgar expressions

• Tää puhelin on ihan paska. - This phone is a total piece or crap.
• Tää on ihan perseestä. - This totally sucks.
• Tää oli ihan helvetin huono idea. - This was a very bad idea. 
• Read more about swearing in Finnish here: http://randomfinnishlesson.blogspot.com/2020/05/how-to-swear-in-finnish.html

Common expressions with ihan

• Mä tuun ihan pian. - I'll come in a minute.
• Ollaan ihan hiljaa. - Let's be quiet.
• Ihan sama! - Whatever!
• Ihanko totta? - Really?

How to avoid the whole word

If you want to say that something is quite something, use aika.

• Tämä kurssi vaikutttaa aika mielenkiintoiselta. - This course seems quite interesting. 
• Read my post about aika: https://randomfinnishlesson.blogspot.com/2013/02/aika.html 

If you want to say that something is really something, use todella or tosi.

• Tämä kurssi vaikuttaa tosi mielenkiintoiselta! - This course seems very interesting!
• Tämä oli todella halpa. - This was really cheap. 
• Meillä oli tosi kivaa. - We had a really good time.
• Read my post about todella and tosi: https://randomfinnishlesson.blogspot.com/2014/08/tosi-todella-oikeasti.html 

Oh, in case you wonder: ihana means lovely and wonderful, and I don't think it has anything to do with ihan. 

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. Follow this blog, if you want to be the first one to know when I post something new.  If you want to subscribe to my newsletter, you can do it here. 

Mun Suomi

I just heard about this new website, and it seems very interesting. Check out Mun Suomi to find out more. Here's some vocabulary to help you navigate the site:

• Outo Suomi - Strange Finland
• Tutustu Suomeen - Get to know Finland
• Ruoka-Suomi - Food Finland
• Suomi-sanakirja - Dictionary about Finnish things
• Puhutaan suomea - Let's speak Finnish
• Henkilöt  - People (Introducing interesting Finns with immigrant background)
• Selkouutiset - News in easy Finnish

Finnish words with one consonant and a long vowel

Yes, all this words are Finnish: 

1. bee
2. dee 
3. gee
4. hoo
5. jaa
6. jee
7. jii
8. joo
9. juu
10. jää 
11. kaa
12. kii
13. koo
14. kuu 
15. kyy
16. köö
17. luu
18. maa
19. mee
20. muu
21. myy
22. mää
23. nii
24. nää
25. paa
26. pee
27. puu
28. pyy
29. pää
30. saa
31. see
32. suu
33. syy
34. sää
35. taa
36. tee
37. tii
38. tuu
39. tää
40. vee

Here are the translations:

1. bee - the letter b
2. dee - the letter d
3. gee - the letter g
4. hoo - the letter h
5. jaa - Oh yeah? /  imperative of jakaa - to deal, to deliver
6. Jee! - Yes!
7. jii - the letter j
8. joo - yes
9. juu - yes / yep
10. jää - ice / imperative of jäädä - to stay
11. kaa - spoken language for kanssa - with as in Tuu mun kaa. - Come with me.
12. kii - spoken language for kiinni, as in Paa ovi kii. - Close the door. 
13. koo - the letter k
14. kuu - the moon / the letter q
15. kyy - a viper
16. köö - a cue stick
17. luu - a bone
18. maa - a country / earth / land
19. mee - spoken language for imperative Mene! - Go!
20. muu - another / other
21. myy - s/he sells / imperative of myydä - to sell 
22. mää - I and me in some lovely dialects
23. nii - spoken language for niin
24. nää - spoken language for nämä - these
25. paa - spoken language for imperative Pane! - Put!
26. pee - the letter p
27. puu -  a tree / wood
28. pyy - a hazel grouse
29. pää - a head / main / capital
30. saa - s/he gets / s/he receives
31. see - the letter c
32. suu - a mouth
33. syy - a reason
34. sää - a weather / you in some lovely dialects
35. taa - spoken language for taakse, to behind
36. tee - tea / a letter t / imperative for tehdä - to do, to make
37. tii - a tee
38. tuu - spoken language for Tule! - Come!
39. tää - spoken language for tämä - this
40. vee - the letter v

Kiitos, kun luit! Jos pidit postauksesta, voit jakaa sen eteenpäin.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to share it. 
– Hanna

Tilaa uutiskirjeeni - Subscribe to my newsletter

Kadonneen jäljillä

Kadonneen jäljillä is a reality show where Finns are searching for their lost relatives. Click the symbol T and you'll get the subtitles in Finnish.

•  Älä unohda nenäliinoja! - Don't forget the tissues!

How to use the Finnish adjectives 'terve' and 'terveellinen'

Terve! Do you know the difference between terve and terveellinen? I hope that this post will clarify it.

Terveellinen

• Omena on terveellinen välipala. - An apple is a healthy snack. 
• Pinaatti on tosi terveellistä. - Spinach is super healthy.
• Lehtikaali on terveellisempää. - Kale is healthier.
• Mikä ruoka on kaikkein terveellisintä? - Which food is the healthiest?
• Istuminen ei ole terveellistä. - Sitting is not healthy.
• Mitkä olisivat terveellisiä vaihtoehtoja jäätelölle? - Which would be healthy alternatives to ice cream? 

The adverb is terveellisesti. 

• Yritän elää mahdollisimman terveellisesti. - I try to live as healthily as possible.
• Sinun pitäisi syödä terveellisemmin. - You should eat more healthily.

Terve

• Oletko jo terve? - Are you feeling well already?
• Toivottavasti tulet pian terveeksi. - I hope you'll get well soon.
• Oletko varma, että sinulla on terve suhde alkoholiin? - Are you sure that you have a healthy relationship with alcohol?
• Tuo ei ole tervettä! - That's insane!

If you liked this, you might also like my post Terveisiä Suomesta.

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.