How to practise speaking Finnish (even with nobody to talk to)

Speaking is a physical skill as much as a mental one. Your mouth needs to learn new sounds, and your brain needs to learn to build sentences quickly. Neither happens by reading. The good news: the first stages of speaking practice do not need another person at all.

1. Talk to yourself, out loud

Describe what you are doing as you do it. It feels silly for about two days, then it becomes a habit. Use simple present-tense sentences, and look up a word when you get stuck.

2. Shadowing

Shadowing means listening to a short recording and repeating it out loud right after the speaker, copying the rhythm, the melody and the long and short sounds. It is one of the best ways to improve your pronunciation and fluency at the same time.

1. Choose a recording of 30–60 seconds with a transcript, such as easy-Finnish news.
2. Listen once while reading.
3. Play one sentence, pause and repeat it. Do the whole recording this way.
4. Then try to speak along with the speaker, with no pauses.
5. Repeat the same recording on several days.

3. Record yourself

Record a one-minute voice memo once a week: introduce yourself, talk about your week, or describe your plans. Keep the recordings. Listening back after a month is the best motivation there is, because you will clearly hear your progress.

4. Practise with an AI tutor

AI speaking tutors are a newer option that fills the gap between practising alone and talking with people. You speak, the tutor answers, and you get feedback. Look for one that lets you speak out loud rather than type, works at your level, and explains mistakes in a language you understand.

Maija works this way: she holds spoken classes with you from Pre-A1 to C2, listens to what you say and gently corrects you. She also tells an accent slip, such as saying a instead of ä, apart from a real grammar mistake, so you are not corrected for every sound.

5. Language exchange (tandem)

In a language exchange you help someone with your language, and they help you with Finnish. You can find partners through universities, community groups and language exchange apps. Agree on a clear split, for example 30 minutes in each language, so Finnish does not get lost.

6. Language cafés

Many Finnish libraries and community centres host free language cafés (kielikahvila), where learners and volunteers chat in easy Finnish. They are relaxed and nobody expects perfection. See learn Finnish online for free for more free options.

7. Use Finnish in real life, even a little

Short, predictable conversations are perfect practice because you can prepare them. Shops, cafés, the library and the pharmacy are great places to start.

When people switch to English

Finns often switch to English to be helpful. It is fine to ask politely to stay in Finnish:

A 15-minute daily speaking routine

Common speaking mistakes and how to handle them

• Waiting until you are ready. Nobody feels ready. Start with what you have.
• Translating word by word from English. Learn whole phrases instead, such as Minulla on (I have).
• Ignoring long and short sounds. Tuli (fire) and tuuli (wind) are different words. Practise them on purpose.
• Only practising written Finnish. Learn to understand spoken Finnish too.
• Stopping at every mistake. Keep going. Fluency first, accuracy follows.

If you are preparing for a test, see the YKI speaking test for the task types and how to practise them.

Practise with Maija

Maija is an AI Finnish tutor for iPhone and Android built around speaking. Classes are spoken out loud, with real-life scenarios such as the shop, work, the doctor and small talk, pronunciation practice and YKI-style speaking tasks, and explanations in 12 languages. To start at the right level, take the free level check.