sisar
/ˈsisɑr/
The English word sister is translated into Finnish as sisar. Wiktionary also lists sisko.
Meaning: woman or girl having the same parents (noun)
Ways to say it
| Finnish | IPA |
|---|---|
| sisar | /ˈsisɑr/ |
| sisko | /ˈsisko/ |
Both forms refer to a woman or girl having the same parents.
Which one should you use?
sisko is the standard word used in everyday conversation to refer to one's own sister, while sisar is used in more formal, literary or biological contexts.
How does it change in a sentence?
The partitive plural form of sisko is siskoja, which is used when referring to an unspecified number of sisters or when sisters are the object of an ongoing action.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈsisɑr/
Did you know?
- The word sisar is a very ancient loanword from Proto-Indo-European, making it a distant relative of the English word 'sister'.
- The word sisar can also be used in Finnish to denote a 'nun' in a Catholic or Orthodox context, distinguishing it from the secular 'sisko'.
- In Finnish, the word sisar is also the root for the word for 'sister-in-law' when combined with other family terms, illustrating how formal roots build complex kinship structures.
Examples in context
- Mun sisko on nätti.My sister is pretty.This sentence is useful for seeing how to describe your own sisko.Tatoeba #7426959 by Thanuir, translation #251899 by CK
- Mari on Tomin sisko.Mary is Tom's sister.This sentence shows how to identify a person as someone's sisko.Tatoeba #3634235 by Silja, translation #1030060 by CK
- Mun sisko on kaunis.My sister is beautiful.This sentence is useful for expressing that your sisko is beautiful.Tatoeba #7426948 by Thanuir, translation #7001865 by Darragh_jd
- Hänen sisarensa on erittäin lahjakas.His sister is very talented.
- Olen menossa leffaan siskoni kanssa.I'm going to the movies with my sister.
- 199 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Matti and Emma are looking at old family photos.
- MattiKuka tämä tyttö on kuvassa?Who is this girl in the photo?
- EmmaHän on minun sisar.She is my sister.
- MattiOnko hän vanhempi kuin sinä?Is she older than you?
- EmmaKyllä, hän on minun isompi sisar.Yes, she is my big sister.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “sister” translations and entries sisar, sisko, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries sisar, sisko, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
