tää / toi / nää / noi

Spoken This and That

Level 2

In spoken Finnish (puhekieli), the standard demonstrative pronouns tämä, tuo, nämä, and nuo are shortened to tää, toi, nää, and noi. Additionally, se and ne are used to refer to people instead of hän and he.

How It Works

Finnish has two distinct registers: written (kirjakieli) and spoken (puhekieli). In speech, demonstratives follow a specific shortened pattern:

  • tää (this) ← tämä
  • toi (that) ← tuo
  • nää (these) ← nämä
  • noi (those) ← nuo
  • se (it/he/she) ← se / hän
  • ne (they) ← ne / he

Referring to People
One of the most important rules in spoken Finnish is that se (singular) and ne (plural) are used for people. Using se for people is the neutral default and is socially acceptable in casual speech; using hän (he/she) in a casual setting can sound overly formal. Tää and toi are used for people when physically pointing them out or when introducing someone (e.g., 'Tää on mun vaimo').

Case Endings
These pronouns still change according to the Finnish case system, but the endings are often shortened:

  • Genitive: tämän → tän, tuon → ton
  • Partitive: tätä → tätä, tuota → tota, sitä → sitä. Note that tota is extremely common as a filler word (like 'um' or 'well').
  • Inessive: tässä → täs, tuossa → tos/tossa
  • Elative: tästä → täst, tuosta → tost, siitä → siit
  • Illative: tähän → tähä, tuohon → toho, siihen → siihe
  • Adessive: tällä → täl, tuolla → tol/tolla

Verb Agreement
In speech, plural demonstratives (nää, noi, ne) are almost always paired with a singular verb form. For example, instead of Ne ovat (They are), speakers say Ne on.

Examples (6)

  1. Tää on mun vaimo.

    This is my wife.

    Word by Word: This is my wife.

    Uses 'tää' (spoken form of 'tämä') to introduce a person standing nearby.

  2. Toi on mun kaveri.

    That is my friend.

    Word by Word: That is my friend.

    Uses 'toi' (spoken form of 'tuo') to point out a person.

  3. Ota nää kirjat.

    Take these books.

    Word by Word: Take these books.

    Uses 'nää' (spoken form of 'nämä') as a determiner for the plural noun 'kirjat'.

  4. Se sano, et se ei tuu.

    He/she said that he/she isn't coming.

    Word by Word: It said, that it not come.

    Demonstrates using 'se' for a person and the shortened verb 'tuu' (tule).

  5. Tota... mä en tiiä.

    Um... I don't know.

    Word by Word: That-partitive... I not know.

    Shows 'tota' (partitive of 'tuo') used as a common filler word, similar to 'um' or 'well'.

  6. Tän nimi on Ville.

    This guy's name is Ville.

    Word by Word: Of-this name is Ville.

    Uses the genitive 'tän' (tämän) to refer to a person nearby.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'hän' in casual conversation.

    Different MeaningHän on kiva ihminen.
    Se on kiva ihminen.

    'Hän on kiva ihminen' is correct standard Finnish. In puhekieli, 'se' is the usual word for 'he' or 'she', and 'hän' can sound stiff.

  • Using plural verb forms with spoken plural pronouns.

    Nää ovat hyviä.
    Nää on hyviä.

    In spoken Finnish, plural subjects like 'nää' or 'ne' almost always take the third-person singular verb form ('on' instead of 'ovat').

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

tää / toi / nää / noiLevel 2Spoken This and That

Learn This First

To understand spoken demonstratives, you first need to be familiar with the standard Finnish demonstrative pronouns (this, that, it) and their plural forms. Additionally, familiarity with how personal pronouns change in speech—specifically the use of 'se' and 'ne' for people—is essential for natural communication.

Words in This Pattern

täätoinäänoi