Ways to say it
| Finnish | IPA |
|---|---|
| nähdään pian | /ˈnæhdæːn ˈpiɑn/ (word by word) |
| nähdään | /ˈnæhdæːn/ |
These phrases are used as a way to say goodbye. While nähdään simply means "see you", adding pian (soon) specifies that the meeting will happen in the near future.
What does it mean word for word?
The word nähdään is the passive voice of the verb nähdä (to see), and it literally translates to "we shall be seen" or "one will see".
Which one should you use?
You can use nähdään on its own to mean "see you" or "see ya". If you want to specify that the meeting will happen soon, use nähdään pian. For a more immediate timeframe, such as seeing someone within a few hours or later the same day, nähdään kohta is more appropriate as it indicates a shorter duration than nähdään pian.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word nähdään can be used on its own as a common way to say "see you" or "see ya" when parting ways.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈnæhdæːn ˈpiɑn/
Did you know?
- The verb stem in nähdään comes from nähdä, a word that is a fundamental part of the Finnish language's unique Uralic roots.
- In Finland, saying nähdään is common even if you have no concrete plan to meet again, functioning more as a polite social marker than a literal promise.
- The word pian is actually a shortened, instructive version of the adjective 'pika', which means 'fast' or 'quick'.
Examples in context
- Nähdään pian!See you soon!Tatoeba #4955086 by Orava, translation #32672 by CK
- Toivottavasti nähdään pian.See you soon, I hope.Tatoeba #5780898 by Orava, translation #4499408 by CK
- nähdään pianSee you soon
Example conversation
Sofia and Mikko are leaving a coffee shop after meeting.
- SofiaNähdään pian, Mikko!See you soon, Mikko!
- MikkoNähdään pian, Sofia.See you soon, Sofia.
- SofiaHyvää päivänjatkoa!Have a good rest of the day!
- MikkoKiitos samoin!Thanks, you too!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “see you soon” translations and entries nähdään, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (nähdään, pian) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries pian, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR, Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
