Learn Hardcore Finnish: Leipomon leipä on vielä kuuma.

Finnish doesn’t use articles. Definiteness and indefiniteness come from context, word order, and case endings. In Leipomon leipä on vielä kuuma, the genitive case (Leipomon) plus context tells you it’s the bakery’s bread, not just a bread.

Why is Leipomo written with -n? What does that ending do?

The -n is the genitive ending, marking possession. Leipomon leipä literally means bakery’s bread (the bread belonging to the bakery).

Why do I see two similar words (Leipomo and leipä)? Are they related?

They share the root leip- (to bake), but they’re different nouns:
• leipomo = bakery (the place where bread is made)
• leipä = bread (the baked product)

What is on in this sentence?

on is the 3rd person singular present tense of olla (to be). Here it simply means is.

What does vielä mean and why is it placed before kuuma?

vielä = still. It’s an adverb showing continuation. Finnish word order is flexible, but adverbs often follow the verb, so leipä on vielä kuuma = the bread is still hot.

Why isn’t kuuma inflected to match leipä?

Predicative adjectives (those that come after the verb olla) remain in the basic form (nominative singular). Only attributive adjectives (those before a noun) agree in case and number.

Could I change the word order for emphasis?

Yes. Finnish allows a lot of freedom. For example:
• Vielä on leipomon leipä kuuma (emphasizes still)
• Leipomon leipä on kuuma vielä (emphasizes hot)
Each variation shifts what you highlight.

How would I say the bread in the bakery instead of the bakery’s bread?

Use the inessive case on leipomo:
Leipomossa leipä on vielä kuuma
Here -ssa means in, so it literally reads In the bakery, the bread is still hot.