Learn Hardcore Finnish: Jään kuuntelemaan, koska opettaja selittää asian ihan hyvin. - I stay to listen because the teacher explains the matter quite well.

With verbs of motion or position (like mennä, tulla, lähteä, jäädä), Finnish uses the MA-infinitive in the illative (-maan/-mään) to express purpose: “go/come/leave/stay to do X.” So jään kuuntelemaan = “I stay to listen.” The basic infinitive kuunnella doesn’t work here.

More examples: menen nukkumaan, tulen auttamaan, jään auttamaan.

Why is it -maan (kuuntelemaan) and not -mään?

Vowel harmony: use -mään if the stem has a front vowel (ä, ö, y), otherwise -maan. The stem kuuntele- contains the back vowel a, so you get kuuntelemaan.

Front-vowel examples: ymmärtää → ymmärtämään, syödä → syömään.
Back-vowel examples: opiskella → opiskelemaan, juoda → juomaan.

Why is the object asian and not asiaa?

Asian is a total object: the matter is seen as a whole and the explaining is viewed as successfully covering it (“explains the (whole) matter”). The partitive asiaa would make it unbounded/ongoing or indefinite (“is explaining (about) the matter”).

Negative sentences take the partitive: Opettaja ei selitä asiaa (“doesn’t explain the matter”).

Does jään mean “I am staying” or “I’ll stay”?

Both are possible. Finnish often uses the present for near-future intentions. Context decides whether it’s present or future. To make intention explicit, you can say aion jäädä kuuntelemaan (“I intend to stay to listen”).

Why is there a comma before koska?

In standard Finnish you put a comma between a main clause and a koska-clause: Jään kuuntelemaan, koska …. If the reason comes first, you also use a comma: Koska opettaja selittää …, jään …. This differs from English, where a comma before “because” is usually not used.

What exactly does ihan hyvin mean?

It’s an idiomatic intensifier meaning “quite well / pretty well.” Ihan can mean “quite/really” (and in some contexts “completely”), but with hyvin it’s a moderate, positive evaluation: not perfect, but clearly good.

Rough comparison: melko/aika = fairly/rather; oikein = really (quite positive); todella/erittäin = really/very (stronger).

Why does dictionary kuunnella show up here as kuuntele- (kuuntelemaan)?

Stem alternation: many verbs in -ella/-ellä use a -ele-/-tele- stem in finite forms and MA-infinitives. So:

kuunnella → kuuntelen → kuuntelemaan Other parallels: ajatella → ajattelen → ajattelemaan, tapella → tappelen → tappelemaan.

Could I omit asian and just say … koska opettaja selittää ihan hyvin?

Yes. Then you’re describing the teacher’s skill in general (“because the teacher explains well”), not referring to a specific matter. Keeping asian ties it to a particular topic/issue that’s being explained.

Can I use something other than koska for “because”?

koska = the default “because” (subordinator). Works everywhere.
sillä = “for/since” (more formal, links two main clauses): Jään kuuntelemaan, sillä opettaja selittää asian…. You don’t front a sillä-clause.
kun = “when,” but in colloquial Finnish it often means “because.” In standard writing prefer koska.
Emphatic: siksi että / sen takia että.

What’s the difference between kuunnella and kuulla?

kuunnella = to listen (active, intentional process). Hence jään kuuntelemaan (“I’ll stay to listen”).
kuulla = to hear (perceive, result). Jään kuulemaan would focus on the result (“I’ll stay to hear [it]”), e.g., waiting to catch an announcement.

How do I know if opettaja means “the teacher” or “a teacher,” since there’s no article?

Finnish has no articles. Opettaja can mean either; context decides. If you must specify, use a demonstrative: se opettaja (“that/the teacher [we have in mind]”) or eräs opettaja (“a certain teacher”).

Why hyvin and not hyvästi?

Hyvin is the normal adverb “well.” Hyvästi exists but is archaic/formulaic and most commonly means “farewell” (Hyvästi!). For “does something well,” always use hyvin.