Learn Hardcore Finnish: Hän ehdottaa, että tilataan pitsaa, koska oppiminen on vaikeaa nälkäisenä. - She suggests that we order pizza, because learning is difficult when hungry.

Finnish uses the present “passive” (better called impersonal) to make inclusive suggestions, much like English “let’s.” So että tilataan means “that we (should) order.” Here tilataan = verb tilata + impersonal present ending -taan/-tään.

What’s the difference between että tilataan and että tilattaisiin?

että tilataan: neutral, straightforward suggestion (“that we order”).
että tilattaisiin: conditional impersonal; softer/more tentative or polite (“that we would/should order”). Both are common after ehdottaa (“to suggest”).

Could I say että me tilaamme instead?

It’s grammatical but changes the feel. että me tilaamme states a plan/fact (“that we are ordering”) rather than making a suggestion. With ehdottaa, Finns usually prefer the impersonal suggestion: että tilataan/tilattaisiin. You can also say että meidän pitäisi tilata, which is explicit advice (“that we should order”).

Why is there a comma before että and koska?

Finnish always places a comma before a subordinating conjunction like että (“that”) and koska (“because”). So the commas in the sentence are obligatory.

Why is pitsaa in the partitive case?

Because it refers to an indefinite/unspecified amount (“some pizza”). In Finnish, objects are partitive for incomplete/indefinite quantities. Alternatives:

Tilataan pitsaa = let’s order some pizza (unspecified amount).
Tilataan pitsa = let’s order a (whole) pizza (total object in impersonal → nominative).
Tilataan pitsat = let’s order the pizzas (plural total object). Note: In impersonal, the total object is nominative (not genitive), hence pitsa, not pitsan.

Is pitsa/pitsaa correct, or must it be pizza/pizzaa?

Both are accepted. pitsa/pitsaa is the recommended Finnish spelling; pizza/pizzaa is also common and understood.

What does nälkäisenä mean, and what case is it?

nälkäisenä is the essive singular of nälkäinen (“hungry”). The essive (-na/-nä) often marks a temporary state or role: “while/when (being) hungry.” Here it functions adverbially: “when hungry.”

Who is “hungry” in nälkäisenä? The learner, the speaker, or “learning” itself?

It refers generically to the person doing the learning—the people in question. Finnish allows such “free” state adverbials; the understood subject is human and contextually clear. If you want to make it explicit, you can say e.g. Nälkäisenä on vaikeaa oppia (“When one is hungry, it’s hard to learn”) or Minun on vaikea oppia nälkäisenä (“I find it hard to learn when I’m hungry”).

Why is vaikeaa (partitive) instead of vaikea?

With the copula olla, a predicative adjective is often in the partitive to express an open‑ended, general evaluation (no clear boundary or quantity): on vaikeaa, on hauskaa, on kivaa, etc. Oppiminen on vaikeaa is the natural way to say “learning is difficult (in general).”

Could I move parts around, like starting with the reason?

Yes. For example: Koska oppiminen on vaikeaa nälkäisenä, hän ehdottaa, että tilataan pitsaa. The commas stay because both koska and että introduce subordinate clauses.

Can I use an infinitive instead of the että‑clause, e.g., Hän ehdottaa tilaamista?

Yes. Hän ehdottaa tilaamista means “He/She suggests ordering (pizza).” It’s compact and idiomatic. If you keep the object, say Hän ehdottaa pitsan tilaamista (“suggests ordering a pizza”).

Why not että tilataanko pitsaa?

tilataanko is a question form (“shall we order?”). After ehdottaa, you want a declarative content clause, not a question. Use että tilataan/tilattaisiin. As a standalone suggestion (not inside että), Tilataanko pitsaa? is perfect.

What exactly is oppiminen?

It’s a verbal noun formed with -minen from oppia (“to learn”), meaning “learning.” It behaves like a noun and takes a singular verb: Oppiminen on...

Does the verb have to be singular (on) with oppiminen?

Yes. Oppiminen is singular, so the copula is on (3rd person singular): Oppiminen on vaikeaa...

How would I say “He suggests we order two pizzas”?

Hän ehdottaa, että tilataan kaksi pitsaa. After numerals, the noun is in partitive singular: kaksi pitsaa.

Are there other natural ways to express the reason part?

Yes:

...koska nälkäisenä on vaikea oppia.
...koska on vaikeaa oppia nälkäisenä. All mean roughly the same (“because it’s hard to learn when hungry”) and are idiomatic.