leipä
/ˈlei̯pæ/
The Finnish word for bread is leipä.
leipä refers to baked dough made from cereals. It is also a component of the compound noun leipäjuusto, which refers to a traditional Finnish squeaky cheese.
Meaning: baked dough made from cereals (noun)
Which one should you use?
While leipä is the noun for the food itself, the related verb leivittää means to coat something in breadcrumbs (to bread).
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
Use the partitive form leipää when referring to an unspecified amount, such as in 'buying bread' or 'eating bread'. Use the genitive form leivän to indicate possession or an 'of' relationship, such as 'the crust of the bread'. To express movement onto the bread, such as 'putting butter onto the bread', use the allative case form leivälle.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈlei̯pæ/
Did you know?
- The Finnish word leipä is an ancient relative of the English word 'loaf'. Both descend from the Proto-Germanic word *hlaibaz.
- Finnish culture has a deep historical connection to ruisleipä, or rye bread. For centuries, this dark bread was the primary staple of the Finnish diet and is still considered a national symbol.
- Traditional Finnish rye bread is often baked in a leivinuuni, a large masonry oven. These ovens were historically the heart of the Finnish home and used for both heating and baking.
Examples in context
- Tom osti liikaa leipää.Tom bought too much bread.This sentence shows how to use the form leipä in the context of buying too much.Tatoeba #6835065 by Henu, translation #6834716 by CK
- Hän söi leipää ja voita.He ate bread with butter.This sentence shows how to use the form leipä when eating bread with butter.Tatoeba #2884798 by Kalle63, translation #868767 by CM
- Tämä leipä on uunituore.This bread is fresh from the oven.This sentence shows how to use the form leipä to describe bread that is fresh from the oven.Tatoeba #3420090 by Silja, translation #60630 by CK
- Voisitteko ystävällisesti tuoda meille lisää leipää?Could you kindly bring us some more bread?
- Hei, muistatko ostaa limppua kaupasta?Hey, remember to buy some bread from the store?
- Menisinkö ostamaan meille vähän pullaa aamupalaksi?Shall I go buy us some sweet buns for breakfast?
- 73 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Emma and Matti are preparing breakfast in the kitchen.
- EmmaOnko meillä vielä leipää?Do we still have any bread?
- MattiEi ole, leipä loppui eilen.No, the bread ran out yesterday.
- EmmaVoin käydä ostamassa leipää.I can go buy some bread.
- MattiKiitos, Emma, se olisi kivaa.Thanks, Emma, that would be nice.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “bread” translations and entries leipä, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries leipä, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
