I'm in an AMK course and my language skills are estimated B1, with listening being the worst. I'm passing my classes, but lectures remain torture because it's just a wall of sound when my teachers speak. Still worse is when my classmates speak in class. In-person classes are rare, so this isn't happening every day. I'm also having incredible difficulty understanding one of my coworkers (there's no one I can say I understand perfectly, but this person stands out). All of these people are native Finnish speakers from across the country. I think what is happening is a combination of speaking quickly, various dielects, and vocab I don't know. But also I just simply cannot process Finnish quickly enough.

I'd love some advice on how to improve listening skills in spoken Finnish at B1+ level. How do you guys get past this wall of sound?

I'd also really appreciate hearing from anyone who has found themselves in a similar position. I just finished a day of classes and the imposter syndrome is overwhelming. Like, have I just fooled everyone around me into thinking I know more Finnish than I do? It's a really discouraging feeling.

A bit more info: I might have some sort of auditory processing issue (need subtitles in my native English when watching TV etc) but not enough to be diagnosable, so let's assume I'm fine. Regarding recommendations, I've tried listening to a particular YouTuber who does comprehensible input but have become exhausted by their endless sales pitches for their paid services.

Leija (n.) – 1. kite; 2. float serve (volleyball); 3. fart (informal)

Example: Hän kiinnitti narun leijaan.

Translation: He attached the string to the kite.

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

Rusetti (n.) – Bow, bowtie

Example: Oletko hyvä solmimaan rusettia?

Translation: Are you good at tying a bow?

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I am curious about the Kalevala and would like to read it but I am a beginner learning Finnish. Does anyone know of any copies that may have a side-by-side English translation? I would prefer if it was not totally English as I know some things may be lost in translation, but I cannot fluently read Finnish yet.

Please also let me know if I’m simply out of luck until I become more fluent. I would be sad but it’s understandable lol.

Taianomainen (adj.) – Magical, magic

Example: Se oli taianomainen hetki.

Translation: It was a magical moment.

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Ignore my basic level of finnish - I am a bit confused when you add the a or ä prefix

An example - Pelaavatko jääkiekkoa , meaning do they play hockey.

Why is a added onto the end of jääkiekko? Chatgpt explained it’s because it’s indefinite but it just confused me even more.

Could somebody explain in a simpler way

Kiitos!

i spotted niin in this text from Iltalehti.

Mutta sää joka tapauksessa kylmenee sen verran, että jos etelään tulee viikonloppuna sateita, niin ainakin osa niistä voi tulla etelärannikkoa myöten lumena.

as far as i understand, the translation of this paragraph is something like-

But it will get cold enough that if there are rains in the south this weekend, at least some of it could fall as snow along the southern coast.

(note this isn’t my translation)

what is ‘niin’ doing here? does ‘ainakin’ not already convey the meaning of ‘at least’?

thanks!

And similar sentances.

Seura (n.) – 1. company; 2. club, society

“Seura” is the basis of many compound words and derived terms, including “hiihtoseura” (skiing club), “juttuseura” (someone to talk to), “ompeluseura” (sewing circle), “sävylasi” (tinted glass), and “uimaseura” (swimming club).

Example: Hän on hyvässä seurassa.

Translation: She is in good company.

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Hello, my request may sound quite... specific.

I'd like to learn Finnish for literary studies, meaning "written poetic" Finnish, not the "spoken" one. Having experience with learning Latin, most books weren't all about "My name is... How old are you..." but they gave a written text, then explained words / grammar based on the text. The difficulty of the texts increased with the progress of course but starting point was "Roma in Italia est" etc. By that method I felt I could read and understand more of ancient literature.

So here goes my question: are there any books / workbooks to learn Finnish in similar way? I'd like to start with understanding simple poetry, even kid's ditty, then folk tales, ending on being able to slowly read and get "Kalevala" or some novel like Pentti Haanpää's "Jauhot". I doubt regular textbook starting with pre-A1 will provide me with understanding Finnish literature, which is my main purpose.

I'm open to hear some general advices how could I achieve my goal. For context knowledge, I've finished philology academic course and got a degree in my national one (Polish) so I'm familiar with "theories of the language" as well as "literary topics" etc. I'm looking forward to getting to know Finland by its literature and cultural legacy, which especially with poetry, works best read in original language.

Thanks in advance

Sävy (n.) – 1. tone (speech or writing); 2. tinge, hue, shade

“Sävy” is the basis of many compound words and derived terms, including “sävykäs” (colorful, multifaceted), “harmaasävykuva” (monochrome), “pohjasävy” (undertone), “sävylasi” (tinted glass), and “vakavasävyinen” (grave).

Example: Tuo on kiva sinisen sävy.

Translation: That's a nice shade of blue.

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Good afternoon! I am slowly learning Finnish (very slowly haha) but in December I am meeting one of my favourite ice hockey players who is Finnish, and I wanted to learn a friendly greeting for when I do! Is just Terve okay, or is there something else that can be used as a friendly greeting? And if I wanted to say like, "we appreciate you" as in "we" being the fans of the hockey team, how would I say that?

Thank you!

"Sovit hänen kanssaan tapaamisajan"

I think I understand the meaning of Make an appointment with him/her, but I'm not really sure of that ending.

I found pimsleur and really like it because I can learn Finnish while I'm doing my dishes and I feel like I retain more when I'm not sitting there trying to focus 150% on the lesson. It's pretty short, though, they only have 30 lessons.

Can anyone suggest a similar, audio-based place? 20+ minutes would be great, although shorter would be okay if it'll auto-play the next lesson. (Hitting "play next" with wet hands seems like a bad idea and drying my hands every 5 minutes seems like a pain in the neck.)

Hohde (n.) – Shine, luster, radiance, glow

“Hohde” is used in many compound words, including “hohdepuuteri” (luminizer cosmetics), “kullanhohde” (shine of gold), “punahohteinen” (having a red glow), “ruusunhohteinen” (rosy), and “tarunhohteinen” (fabled, mythical).

Example: Uuden ennätyksen tekeminen lisäsi hohdetta hänen nimeensä.

Translation: Setting a new record added luster to his name.

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I was wondering if there are abbreviated ways to say Ordinal numbers or any other long words in finnish? As in is there a shorter way that people use to say 21st? kahdekskymmenesensimmäinen is an insane tongue twister to me.

If anyone knows any resources on I guess this would be called slang for abbreviations? I would be grateful to know them Thank you.

I see this word often in movies, and from context it’s another way of saying okei. However, sometimes I’ll watch an entire move and it appears lots, and sometimes never. So I assume it’s either very formal or informal?

Thanks :)

Parannuskeino (n.) – Cure, remedy

Example: Oletko löytänyt parannuskeinon?

Translation: Have you found a cure?

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Hi everyone, I am looking to start learning Finnish, does anyone know any good book/site to learn Finnish? also media in general.

also how do you say "I love you" in Finnish?

Esikuva (n.) – Role model, paragon, inspiration

Example: Onko sinulla ketään esikuvaa?

Translation: Do you have a role model?

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

In regards to writing and grammar, what's something you recommend to learn because it's extremely important?

In regards to speaking, what would that one thing be?

Hey everyone! 👋

A while back, I built an iOS app to help with my Finnish learning, and a bunch of you asked if I could make it for Android too. Well, it’s finally here! 🎉

The Android version of KieliPro includes all the core features from iOS:

1. Finnish-English dictionary with tons of words 🗣️
2. Vocabulary sets to help you learn in context 📚
3. Save your favourite words and check your recent searches 🔖

The word-matching game and widget aren’t available yet, but they’re on the way in future updates!

The app name is KieliPro, check it out on Google Play:

Download for Android

If you’re on iOS, you can still grab the app here:

iOS Download

And here is my original post on Reddit.

Käsiala (n.) – Handwriting

Example: Hänellä on aivan ihana käsiala.

Translation: She has quite beautiful handwriting.

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So semi recently I figured out I have some finnish blood in me but I have genuinely no idea how to say the last name and I have no other sources i havent found anything online. so if anyone could help that would be great.

Edit: Thank you to everyone who helped in anyway I appreciate it