Learn Finnish vocabulary by typing words and phrases from flashcards. The flashcard summary allows you to check your progress and select flashcards to learn.
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The flashcards have their specific settings. You can make the following changes to customize your vocabulary learning experience:Choosing the number of flashcards per exercise
You can choose how many flashcards you want to practice during a typing session. The default number is ten. Selecting a smaller amount of vocabulary may be a good idea if you are a beginner.
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If your keyboard layout does not support certain special characters or diacritics of the language you practice with flashcards, the system can ignore some of these characters. Special characters will be accepted as their closest Latin alphabet equivalents when possible. For example, if the word to type is único and you type unico because your layout doesn't support accents, it won't be considered an error.
Phonetic Symbols in Finnish Pronunciation
The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) provides a standardized set of symbols to represent the sounds of spoken language. Below are the IPA symbols for Finnish pronunciation, with examples and descriptions, including the pronunciation of these sounds in English.
Finnish Vowels
- /ɑ/ - as in talo, pronounced /ˈtɑlo/ (like "a" in father /ˈfɑːðər/)
- /e/ - as in setä, pronounced /ˈsetæ/ (like "e" in bed /bɛd/)
- /i/ - as in mies, pronounced /ˈmies/ (like "ee" in see /siː/)
- /o/ - as in talo, pronounced /ˈtɑlo/ (like "o" in not /nɒt/)
- /u/ - as in kukka, pronounced /ˈkukːɑ/ (like "oo" in boot /buːt/)
- /y/ - as in kyllä, pronounced /ˈkylːæ/ (like "ü" in German müde /ˈmyːdə/)
- /æ/ - as in hätä, pronounced /ˈhætæ/ (similar to "a" in cat /kæt/)
- /ø/ - as in höyhen, pronounced /ˈhøyhen/ (like "eu" in French peur /pœʁ/)
Finnish Diphthongs
- /ɑi/ - as in kai, pronounced /kɑi/ (like "eye" in my /maɪ/)
- /ei/ - as in seinä, pronounced /ˈseinæ/ (like "ay" in say /seɪ/)
- /ou/ - as in koulu, pronounced /ˈkoulu/ (like "ow" in cow /kaʊ/)
- /ui/ - as in suin, pronounced /sui̯n/ (like "oi" in coin /kɔɪn/)
- /ie/ - as in tien, pronounced /tien/ (like "ye" in yes /jes/)
- /yø/ - as in hyö, pronounced /hyø/ (similar to "eu" in French fleur /flœʁ/)
Finnish Consonants
- /p/ - as in paita, pronounced /ˈpɑitɑ/ (like "p" in pen /pɛn/)
- /b/ - as in bussi, pronounced /ˈbusːi/ (like "b" in bat /bæt/)
- /t/ - as in talo, pronounced /ˈtɑlo/ (like "t" in top /tɒp/)
- /d/ - as in delfiini, pronounced /ˈdelfiːni/ (like "d" in dog /dɒɡ/)
- /k/ - as in kissa, pronounced /ˈkisːɑ/ (like "k" in cat /kæt/)
- /ɡ/ - as in golf, pronounced /ɡolf/ (like "g" in go /ɡoʊ/)
- /f/ - as in fakta, pronounced /ˈfɑktɑ/ (like "f" in fun /fʌn/)
- /v/ - as in vesi, pronounced /ˈvesi/ (like "v" in voice /vɔɪs/)
- /s/ - as in sana, pronounced /ˈsɑnɑ/ (like "s" in see /siː/)
- /z/ - as in zebra, pronounced /ˈzeːbrɑ/ (like "z" in zebra /ˈzɛbrə/)
- /ʃ/ - as in shakki, pronounced /ˈʃɑkːi/ (like "sh" in shoe /ʃuː/)
- /ʈʂ/ - as in tšekki, pronounced /ˈʈʂekːi/ (like "ch" in chess /tʃɛs/)
- /ŋ/ - as in rengas, pronounced /ˈreŋɡɑs/ (like "ng" in sing /sɪŋ/)
- /h/ - as in hauska, pronounced /ˈhɑuskɑ/ (like "h" in hat /hæt/)
- /l/ - as in lumi, pronounced /ˈlumi/ (like "l" in leaf /liːf/)
- /r/ - as in ranta, pronounced /ˈrɑntɑ/ (like "r" in carrot /ˈkærət/, but rolled)
- /m/ - as in mies, pronounced /ˈmies/ (like "m" in man /mæn/)
- /n/ - as in nainen, pronounced /ˈnɑinɛn/ (like "n" in net /nɛt/)
- /j/ - as in jää, pronounced /jæː/ (like "y" in yes /jɛs/)
Unique Features of Finnish Pronunciation
While Finnish pronunciation shares similarities with other Uralic languages, it also has unique features that are important for learners to understand.
- Vowel Harmony: Finnish vowels are divided into front vowels (ä, ö, y) and back vowels (a, o, u). Words typically contain either front or back vowels, but not both.
- Consonant Gradation: Many Finnish words undergo a process where consonants alternate between strong and weak forms in different grammatical contexts, such as kukka (flower, nominative) vs. kukan (flower, genitive).
- Double Letters: Both vowels and consonants can be doubled in Finnish, which affects the length and stress of the syllable, e.g., tuli (fire) vs. tuuli (wind).
- Phonemic Length: Finnish distinguishes between short and long vowels and consonants, which can change the meaning of a word, such as muta (mud) vs. mutta (but).
- Rolling "r": The Finnish /r/ is always rolled, unlike in English where it can be more relaxed.