YKI Vocabulary: 25 Finnish Workplace Words for Practice

Work is one of the topic categories in the official YKI test framework, alongside areas such as housing, services and health. This makes workplace vocabulary useful preparation, but it does not guarantee a particular workplace task in your reading, writing, listening or speaking test. YKI assesses language proficiency, not specialist knowledge of employment law.

The 25 words below are grouped by everyday situations: applying for a job, discussing a contract, working with colleagues, asking about pay and leaving a job. Use the list to practise understanding and producing short messages. Memorising it alone does not establish your YKI level or guarantee a passing grade.

Applying for a Job

Job advertisements are useful practice texts. Look for the job title, required experience and application deadline. Then practise describing your own experience in a few sentences. This is a practice activity, not a prediction of the questions you will receive.

• Työpaikkailmoitus: Job advertisement.
• Hakemus: Application.
• Ansioluettelo: Resume or CV.
• Työhaastattelu: Job interview.
• Työkokemus: Work experience.

Contracts and Employment Types

When reading a practice text about a job, check whether the work is fixed-term or permanent, and part-time or full-time. These are separate distinctions: a permanent job can also be part-time. Use the details given in the text rather than making assumptions from a single familiar word.

• Työsopimus: Employment contract.
• Koeaika: Probation period, typically the first few months of a new job.
• Määräaikainen: Fixed-term contract, valid until a specific date or the completion of a project.
• Vakinainen: Permanent contract, with no end date.
• Osa-aikainen: Part-time work.
• Kokoaikainen: Full-time work.

Daily Office Life

Practise describing a typical workday or an imagined job. Choose two or three of these words and use them in clear sentences. A short message that communicates your meaning is more useful than adding complicated words you cannot yet use confidently.

• Palaveri: Meeting.
• Tauko: Break.
• Etätyö: Remote work.
• Esihenkilö: Supervisor or manager (a gender-neutral term that has largely replaced the older esimies in modern Finnish workplaces).
• Työkaveri: Colleague or coworker.
• Vuorotyö: Shift work.

Salary and Absences

For writing practice, draft a short message to a supervisor explaining an absence or asking about a payslip. State why you are writing, give the relevant detail and make a clear request. Match the tone to the recipient and follow the instructions in your practice task.

• Palkka: Salary.
• Palkkakuitti: Payslip.
• Sairausloma: Sick leave.
• Lomaraha: Holiday bonus, a payment distinct from holiday pay; eligibility depends on the applicable agreement.
• Ylityö: Overtime.

Leaving a Job

Practise distinguishing a person choosing to leave a job from an employer ending the employment. In a reading exercise, identify who makes the decision and support your answer with a detail from the text. These vocabulary explanations are for language practice, not advice about a specific employment dispute.

• Irtisanoutuminen: Resignation (when you choose to leave your job).
• Irtisanominen: Dismissal (when the employer terminates your employment).
• Työtodistus: Certificate of employment, a document describing your employment, such as its duration and your duties.

How to Actually Memorize These 25 Words

A flat list is a good starting point, but active recall works far better than passive re-reading. Write each word on one side of a flashcard and its meaning on the other, and quiz yourself in random order rather than the order presented here. The grouping above is for learning, not for testing yourself. Review the cards every day during your commute or lunch break, and once you can recognize a word instantly, move it to a "known" pile and focus your remaining time on the words that still slow you down.

An even more effective technique is to build full sentences using each word rather than memorizing it in isolation. For example, instead of just learning that koeaika means "probation period," practice a sentence like "Työsopimuksessani koeaika on kuusi kuukautta" ("In my employment contract, the probation period is six months"). This trains you to recognize the word in the kind of natural sentence structure the exam actually uses, not just as an isolated flashcard term.

Putting the Vocabulary Into a Full Sentence

A short worked example makes the difference between recognizing a word and actually being able to use it under exam pressure. Consider this realistic sentence you might see in a reading passage: "Työsopimukseni on määräaikainen, ja koeaika kestää neljä kuukautta. Esihenkilöni ilmoitti, että palkka maksetaan kuun viimeisenä arkipäivänä." ("My employment contract is fixed-term, and the probation period lasts four months. My supervisor informed me that salary is paid on the last working day of the month.") A comprehension question built around this sentence might ask what type of contract the person has, how long the probation period is, or when salary is paid, all answerable directly from the vocabulary above, without needing to understand every other word in the passage.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why practise workplace vocabulary for YKI?

Work belongs to the official YKI topic categories. Workplace messages give you a practical way to study requests, explanations, dates and polite questions. You should also practise the other topic categories; this guide does not establish how frequently work appears on any test date.

What is the difference between "irtisanoutuminen" and "irtisanominen"?

Irtisanoutuminen means the employee resigning. In the workplace examples here, irtisanominen refers to the employer terminating the employment. The words are similar, so read the complete sentence to identify who is acting.

Will I need to write a formal email using this vocabulary?

A workplace email is a useful practice task, but no particular email topic is guaranteed. Practise explaining an absence, requesting time off and asking a question about a payslip, as well as messages about housing, services and other everyday situations.

Is "esihenkilö" the only correct word for a manager?

No. You may encounter both esimies and esihenkilö. The latter is a gender-neutral term for a supervisor. Learn to recognise both and use the term that fits the context.

Which words should I learn first?

These 25 words are a selected practice list, not an official list of required YKI vocabulary. Start with words you need in your own life, then practise the distinctions you find difficult, such as fixed-term versus permanent work. Review the words in complete sentences.