Learn Hardcore Finnish: Minusta puhuminen on usein vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen, mutta kuunteleminen on helpointa. - In my opinion speaking is often harder than writing, but listening is the easiest.

Which one is intended depends on context, but in language‑learning contexts, the “in my opinion / for me” reading is much more common:
Minusta [puhuminen] on usein vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen…

Why is it Minusta, not Minä or Mielestäni?

Minä is nominative, used as a subject: Minä puhun = I speak.
You can’t use it in this structure: ✗ Minä puhuminen on vaikeampaa is ungrammatical.
Minusta (elative) is used in a very common opinion pattern:
- Minusta tämä on vaikeaa. = I think this is difficult / For me this is difficult.
- Minusta puhuminen on vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen.
Mielestäni literally means in my opinion (from mieli = mind, -stä
- -ni):
- Mielestäni puhuminen on vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen.

In this sentence you could say either:

Minusta puhuminen on…
Mielestäni puhuminen on…

Both are natural; minusta is slightly more colloquial and more frequent in speech.

What are puhuminen, kirjoittaminen, and kuunteleminen exactly?

They are verb-based nouns, often called:

-minen-forms
or “action nouns” (traditionally “4th infinitive”)

Formed from verbs:

puhua → puhuminen (speaking, talking)
kirjoittaa → kirjoittaminen (writing)
kuunnella → kuunteleminen (listening)

In this sentence they behave like nouns and function as subjects:

Puhuminen on … = Speaking is …
Kirjoittaminen on … = Writing is …
Kuunteleminen on … = Listening is …

This is very similar to English gerunds (speaking, writing, listening).

Why is puhuminen / kirjoittaminen / kuunteleminen in this form (no case ending)?

Here they are in nominative singular, because they act as subjects of the verb on (is):

Puhuminen on vaikeampaa. – Speaking is harder.
Kirjoittaminen on kivaa. – Writing is nice.
Kuunteleminen on helpointa. – Listening is the easiest.

You would change their case only if their grammatical role changes:

Pidän puhumisesta. – I like speaking. (elative, -sta)
Aloitan kirjoittamisen. – I’ll start writing. (genitive, -n)
Inhoan kuuntelemista. – I hate listening. (partitive, -a)

Why is it vaikeampaa and helpointa, not vaikeampi and helpoin?

Vaikeampaa and helpointa are the partitive singular forms of the comparative and superlative adjectives:

vaikea (difficult) → vaikeampi (more difficult) → vaikeampaa (partitive)
helppo (easy) → helpoin (easiest) → helpointa (partitive)

In sentences like:

Puhuminen on vaikeampaa.
Kuunteleminen on helpointa.

the adjective is a predicative (describing the subject), and it often appears in the partitive when:

The subject is an abstract activity or something “mass‑like” (such as -minen nouns), and
You’re making a general, non-limited statement (“speaking is [generally] harder”).

Compare:

Puhuminen on vaikeaa. (neutral, general: Speaking is hard.)
vs.
Tämä tehtävä on vaikea. (nominative: This particular task is hard.)

So vaikeampaa/helpointa sound more natural here because we’re talking about skills in a general way, not about one specific, bounded item.

Could we say “Kuunteleminen on helpompi” instead of “helpointa”?

Not with the same meaning.

helpompi = easier (comparative)
helpoin/helpointa = easiest (superlative)

In the sentence we have three activities:

puhuminen (speaking)
kirjoittaminen (writing)
kuunteleminen (listening)

By saying:

… mutta kuunteleminen on helpointa.

you say listening is the easiest of them all.

If you said:

… mutta kuunteleminen on helpompaa.

you would only say listening is easier (than something); the sentence would sound incomplete unless you add what it’s compared to:

Kuunteleminen on helpompaa kuin puhuminen. – Listening is easier than speaking.

Why is helpointa (partitive) instead of helpoin (nominative)?

Both are possible in Finnish, but they have a nuance difference.

Kuunteleminen on helpoin.
– Tends to refer to a clearly limited, known set:
Listening is the easiest (of these specific options).
Kuunteleminen on helpointa.
– More generic / unbounded:
Listening is (generally) the easiest [for me, as a skill].

Because we’re talking about language skills in general, the partitive superlative (helpointa) fits better. The same pattern as with vaikeampaa: it sounds more natural with abstract activities and general statements.

Why is it “vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen”, not “vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaa”?

After comparatives like vaikeampi (more difficult), Finnish usually uses parallel forms:

puhuminen on vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen
speaking is harder than writing

Both sides are -minen nouns, which balances the structure nicely.

You can see kuin + infinitive in some contexts, but with this kind of general comparison of activities, -minen vs. -minen is the standard and safest pattern:

Lukeminen on helpompaa kuin kirjoittaminen. – Reading is easier than writing.
Käveleminen on hitaampaa kuin pyöräileminen. – Walking is slower than cycling.

Can we move Minusta or usein to other positions? Does the meaning change?

Yes, word order in Finnish is flexible and mainly affects emphasis, not core meaning.

Possible variants:

Minusta puhuminen on usein vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen.
– Neutral: “In my opinion, speaking is often harder than writing.”
Puhuminen on minusta usein vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen.
– Emphasises that you personally feel that way:
“Speaking is, in my opinion, often harder than writing.”
Puhuminen on usein minusta vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen.
– Less typical; sounds a bit awkward.
Minusta puhuminen on vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen usein.
– Very unnatural; adverb usein usually comes before the adjective or near the verb, not tagged on at the end like that.

Most natural for learners: keep Minusta at the beginning and usein before the adjective:

Minusta puhuminen on usein vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen.

Is there any difference between usein and useimmiten here?

Both are possible, with a slight difference in nuance:

usein = often
useimmiten = most often / mostly, in most cases

So:

Minusta puhuminen on usein vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen…
– Speaking is often harder than writing.
Minusta puhuminen on useimmiten vaikeampaa kuin kirjoittaminen…
– Speaking is most of the time harder than writing.

Usein is a bit weaker and more neutral; useimmiten suggests “in the majority of cases”.