Definitions
Wiktionary
- n. strength of will; determination; perseverance; regarded as an integral part of Finnish culture
Etymologies
- Finnish, documented in English since at least 1940. (Wiktionary)
Examples
“Meeri Zetterstrom once told a reporter it was "sisu" - a Finnish word she translated into English as stubbornness - that was at the heart of her success.”
“Because they live in a harsh environment, they say, they believe in planning, and in tools -- and in a virtue called sisu, which is hard to translate but involves self-reliance and a kind of frontier spirit.”
“The perceived inequalities of the IRB's ranking system stirs the passions of 'sisu' - a Finnish word loosely defined as fighting spirit - in the national team's players, whatever their country of origin.”
“ASK Finns about their national character and chances are the word sisu will come up.”
“The former Belgian premier touched on the financial crisis that Finland experienced in the beginning of 1990s and noted how it pulled through with "determination and 'sisu' - a new (Finnish) word for me - or perseverance," he said.”
“Filmi on ilmselt näinud igaüks ning seetõttu tundub sisu tutvustamine üsna absurdne tegevus.”
“Having Finnish "sisu" must have been a great help.”
“Sometimes they called her "Shirl the Pearl" and in the language of her Finnish ancestors everyone said she was blessed with 'sisu' or fortitude.”
“Though a bit undersized, Pihlstrom plays with energy and what the Finns call "sisu".”
“Instead of the rapid Blitzkrieg type victory Stalin's high command predicted, the ill-prepared and poorly led Soviet Army marched into a frozen, desolate meat-grinder, learning the meaning of "sisu", a Finnish term that could be roughly translated as strength of will, determination, perseverance, and acting rationally in the face of adversity.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘sisu’.
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Twitter favourites
The new favourite words of people on Twitter.
A script searches Twitter for "X is my new favourite word" and adds it to this list.
See also:
thunderfuck, incredible, merp, sara, flopparoo, smother, fugly, buer, plum, canny, nefelibata, cuntbucket and 1972 more... -
Chained Bear's Favorite Words
peruvian, sparky, poop, etymological, fuck, whatnot, pulchritude, nosh, tetched, quotidian, squalid, trajectory and 388 more...
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kewpid's Words
moleskine, araldite, dessicate, cellar door, grotesque, fallacy, vendetta, raindrop, panacea, ethereal, hircus, treppenwitz and 446 more...
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stpeter's Words
abase, abasement, abashed, abdicate, aberrant, abeyance, abhor, abhorrent, abide, abject, ablation, abnegation and 3536 more...
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A Peckerwick of Fiffoldry
fogray, whalesong, solregn, shoecabbage, thorn-bush, thistledown, pomander, thornbush, dreamy duskywing, sedge, unbunting-like, quilp and 119 more...
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Finlandization
Peculiar Finnish Lexicon. At your own risk.
pippeli, pissis, äiti, nöf nöf, isä, saippuakauppias, sää, lammas, peli, pupu, molotov cocktail, sisu and 29 more...
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Foreign words I like
gemütlich, je ne sais quoi, sisu, schaudenfreude, ennui, saudade, Malayalam, laissez faire, in medias res, memento mori, molon labe, bon mot and 1 more...
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Finland
suomi, kirkko, sisu, finland, kalevala, sähkö, valituskuoro, lumipalloefekti, kysymys, vapaapäivä, hiisi, äijiä and 12 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for sisu.
carlmacki Sisu (Finnish deriv.) possessing mettle or verve Apr 1, 2009
chained_bear That's a great word. Thanks bilby. I think I could use some sisu today... Feb 26, 2008
bilby "'In winter,' says Hannalinna, 'I light a lot of candles, a lot of fires. You need a bit of sisu.' Yes, sisu, that untranslatable, indispensable Finnish concept, a combination of physical, mental and spiritual stamina, a going inwards to a core of strength in the face of solitary adversity. It's a word I've often thought would serve well in Australia, for the pioneers, the wood splitters and early farmers, except that I think the cold and dark are an indispensable part of the sisu mix."
- 'The Arctic Oz' in GW, Guy Rundle, 23 Feb 2008. Feb 26, 2008