Taskusanakirja FAQ

Quick Fixes for Common Issues

What is Taskusanakirja?

Taskusanakirja (literally “pocket dictionary” in Finnish) is a fast, offline-first Finnish-English dictionary designed for the command line. But don’t let that scare you off! It’s a single, portable file that just works – no installation wizardry required. Think of it as your Finnish language sidekick that provides instant search-as-you-type, handles inflected words, shows example sentences, and more. Learn more about the full feature set.

How do I install it?

The super simple way:

1. Download the file for your operating system from our Downloads page
2. Double-click it. That’s it!

For the terminal enthusiasts:

• Rename it to taskusanakirja for easier typing
• Make it executable (Linux/Mac: chmod +x taskusanakirja)
• Optionally add it to your PATH

No dependencies, no package managers, no headaches. Just download and run!

What platforms does it work on?

Pretty much everything:

• Windows (32-bit and 64-bit)
• macOS (Intel and Apple Silicon M1/M2/M3)
• Linux (amd64 and arm64)

Each platform gets a native binary that runs without any extra software.

Do I need command line experience?

Nope! While it’s technically a command-line tool, you can use it without knowing anything about terminals:

1. Double-click the downloaded file
2. Type your Finnish word
3. Use arrow keys to browse
4. Press ‘q’ or Esc to quit

The interactive interface (TUI) is designed to be intuitive even if you’ve never touched a terminal before.

Does it work offline?

Yes! The entire dictionary is baked into that one file you downloaded. You only need internet for:

• Activating a Pro license
• Downloading the inflections database (Pro feature, one-time 2.6GB download)
• Occasional license checks (Pro users only, like once a month)

How do I look up a Finnish word?

Interactive mode (the easy way):

./taskusanakirja

Then just start typing! Results appear instantly as you type.

Quick lookup from command line:

./taskusanakirja find kissa
./taskusanakirja koira  # 'find' is optional

How do I find Finnish words when I only know the English?

In the TUI: Press Ctrl-F to toggle reverse search mode

From command line:

./taskusanakirja rfind house
./taskusanakirja rfind "small flying insect"

What are all these keyboard shortcuts?

Here are the ones you’ll actually use:

What’s this “Go Deeper” feature?

When you’re looking at a definition, other Finnish words within that definition get embedded directly into the details view with their definitions. It’s like Wikipedia rabbit holes, but for Finnish vocabulary - the related word definitions appear right there without needing to search again. Super useful when one word leads you to discover five more.

Can I build my own vocabulary lists?

Absolutely! One of the most underrated features is the vocabulary builder. While you’re browsing words in the TUI:

• Press Ctrl-S to mark any word you want to remember
• Press Ctrl-L to see your entire marked word collection
• Press Ctrl-S again on a marked word to unmark it

The visual feedback is immediate - marked words get a yellow border and title that says “Ctrl-S to unmark”. When you quit the app, it automatically exports your marked words to two timestamped files:

• JSONL format (taskusanakirja-marked_2025-01-15-14-30-45.jsonl) - Contains complete dictionary entries with all definitions in structured JSON format:

  {
    "word": "vielä",
    "pos": "adv", 
    "meanings": [
      "another (determiner in English), in addition, more",
      "still (nevertheless)",
      "still (up to a time, as in the preceding time)",
      "yet, even (to an even greater degree; emphasizing a comparative)",
      "yet (thus far)"
    ]
  }
  

  Perfect for importing into other tools or processing with jq.

• Text format (taskusanakirja-marked_2025-01-15-14-30-45.txt) - Simple word list with header:

  Base Form
  vielä
  

  Great for flashcard apps or studying.

This is fantastic for building themed vocabulary sets (like “kitchen terms” or “words I encountered reading Väinö Linna”) or just tracking your Finnish learning progress over time.

What are example sentences?

Real Finnish sentences from the Tatoeba project showing how words are actually used. Press Ctrl-T in the TUI to see them. Way better than memorizing isolated words!

What’s the difference between Pro and Free?

Free Version (already pretty awesome):

• Complete Finnish-English dictionary
• English-to-Finnish reverse lookup
• Interactive TUI and command line modes
• Basic inflection handling
• Example sentences
• Vocabulary builder
• 100% offline dictionary

See the full feature breakdown for technical details.

Pro Version (for the serious learners):

• The killer feature: Complete lemmatization – finds base forms of ANY inflected word
• Comprehensive morphological analysis
• Etymology information when available
• Advanced search filters
• Priority support

Do I really need Pro?

You’ll love Pro if:

• You’re reading real Finnish texts and constantly encounter words like “kissoilleen” and wonder “what the heck is the base form?”
• You’re serious about learning Finnish
• You want to understand not just what a word means, but how it’s constructed
• You value your time (manually figuring out inflections is tedious)

Free is probably fine if:

• You’re just starting with Finnish
• You mainly look up basic vocabulary
• You’re mostly dealing with dictionary forms

How much does Pro cost?

15 euros. One time. No subscriptions, no recurring fees, no nonsense. Buy once, use forever. Get your Pro license here.

How do I activate my Pro license?

After purchasing:

./taskusanakirja license set YOUR-LICENSE-KEY-HERE
./taskusanakirja download-inflections  # This downloads 2.6GB

Your license key looks like: XXXXXXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXXXXXXXXXX

Pro tip: Use ./taskusanakirja license --map check to see a visual diagram of your license status and the validation process.

What’s this inflection search everyone’s raving about?

Finnish words change form like crazy. The word “talo” (house) has forms like talossa, talosta, taloihin, taloilla… Pro’s inflection search instantly tells you that “taloilla” = “talo” + locative plural. Game changer for reading comprehension.

# Pro feature examples
./taskusanakirja lemma kissojen  # → kissa (cat) + genitive plural
./taskusanakirja lemma juoksentelisin  # → juoksennella + conditional

How big is this thing?

• The app itself: ~60-65MB (all platforms)
• Pro inflections database: Additional 2.6GB
• Total with Pro: About 2.7GB

Where does it store files?

Everything lives in ~/.config/taskusanakirja/:

• config.yaml - Your settings
• license.bin - Pro license (encrypted)
• inflections.db - The big inflections database (Pro)
• debug.log - Detailed debug info when --debug flag is used (includes license validation, data loading, and error details)

Is the source code available?

Taskusanakirja is a closed-source application. We focus on providing a high-quality, well-tested binary distribution that works reliably across all supported platforms.

Is my data private?

Absolutely:

• No tracking - Your searches stay on your computer
• No analytics - We don’t know what you’re looking up
• No cloud - Everything runs locally
• License checks only - Pro version phones home occasionally just to verify your license

Read our full Privacy Policy for complete details.

It won’t start - what do I do?

macOS: “Unidentified developer” warning? Go to System Preferences → Security & Privacy → Click “Open Anyway”

Windows: “Windows protected your PC”? Click “More info” → “Run anyway”

Linux: Make it executable first: chmod +x taskusanakirja

License activation is failing - what’s wrong?

1. Wait a few minutes - It can take a few minutes for newly purchased licenses to propagate to our worldwide databases. The license verification will keep trying automatically, so you can just wait and it should work
2. Check your internet - You need to be online for activation
3. Try 2-3 times - There’s a quirk where license check sometimes needs multiple attempts
4. Verify the key - Make sure you copied the whole UUID
5. Still stuck? Email andrew@siilikuin.com

The inflection database download keeps failing - why?

It’s a big file (2.6GB), so:

• Check you have 3GB+ free disk space
• Use a stable internet connection
• Just retry - it automatically resumes interrupted downloads
• Check your firewall isn’t blocking it
• The download has built-in retry logic (3 attempts) and shows a progress bar

TUI looks weird/broken - how do I fix it?

Your terminal needs to:

• Support UTF-8 (for Finnish characters)
• Support colors
• Be reasonably sized (not 10 columns wide)

Recommended terminals:

• Alacritty - Cross-platform, fast, and rock-solid UTF-8 support
• Windows: Windows Terminal, PowerShell 7+
• macOS: iTerm2, built-in Terminal.app
• Linux: GNOME Terminal, Konsole, Terminator

Try a different terminal emulator if yours is ancient.

I get “Command not found” - what’s happening?

Either:

• Use ./taskusanakirja (with the ./ prefix)
• Or add it to your PATH
• Or you’re in the wrong directory

Is this good for beginners?

Absolutely! While the Pro features shine for intermediate/advanced learners, beginners love:

• Instant lookups without context switching
• Multiple meanings shown clearly
• Example sentences for context
• The vocabulary builder for tracking progress

How accurate is it?

The data comes from Wiktionary and Tatoeba - both solid, community-maintained sources. Read more about our data sources and licensing. Coverage is excellent for:

• Common vocabulary
• Standard Finnish
• Most inflected forms

Very specialized jargon or brand-new slang might be missing.

Does it show pronunciation?

Not yet. For pronunciation, pair it with:

• Forvo for audio
• Any Finnish learning app with audio
• IPA guides if you’re into that

What about those crazy long compound words?

Finnish loves its compound words! Taskusanakirja handles many of them, and the “go deeper” feature often helps you understand the components. Pro version’s morphological analysis is especially helpful here.

Can I script with it?

Oh yes! It’s very script-friendly:

# Batch lookups (efficient - pass all words at once)
./taskusanakirja find koira kissa omena

# Process a word list (also efficient)
./taskusanakirja find $(cat words.txt)

# Individual lookups (slower due to startup overhead)
for word in koira kissa omena; do
    ./taskusanakirja find "$word"
done

# Use in conditions
if ./taskusanakirja find "$word" | grep -q "noun"; then
    echo "$word is a noun"
fi

# Configure via environment variables
export TSK_DEBUG=true           # Enable debug logging

Does it support shell completion?

Generate completion scripts for your shell:

# Bash
./taskusanakirja completion bash > /etc/bash_completion.d/taskusanakirja

# Zsh
./taskusanakirja completion zsh > "${fpath[1]}/_taskusanakirja"

# Fish
./taskusanakirja completion fish > ~/.config/fish/completions/taskusanakirja.fish

# PowerShell (Windows)
./taskusanakirja completion powershell > taskusanakirja.ps1

Can I run multiple searches at once?

Yep! Just list them:

./taskusanakirja find koira kissa lintu omena

Can I use this in my commercial project/Docker container/SaaS?

The standard license covers personal use and typical business scenarios. For commercial redistribution, embedding in products, or specialized commercial use cases, please review our Terms of Service and EULA for the full details.

We’re happy to work out bespoke commercial licenses for your specific needs - just email andrew@siilikuin.com to discuss!

How do I get help?

1. This FAQ (you’re already here!)
2. Built-in help: ./taskusanakirja --help
3. Legal documents: ./taskusanakirja legal (view EULA, privacy policy, terms of service)
4. Command details: Check our detailed command reference
5. Email: andrew@siilikuin.com (Pro users get priority)
6. Email: andrew@siilikuin.com for bugs and feature requests

Can I contribute?

Yes! Since we use open-source data:

• Add Finnish words to Wiktionary
• Add example sentences to Tatoeba
• Report bugs or request features via email: andrew@siilikuin.com

You can also learn more about contributing to the project on our About page.

Where does the dictionary data come from?

• Words & definitions: Wiktionary (CC BY-SA license)
• Example sentences: Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR)
• Inflections: Curated database (Pro feature)

All properly attributed and legally used! See our Data Sources page for detailed attribution and licensing information.

Is this open source?

The app itself is proprietary, but it’s built entirely on open-source linguistic data. The Pro inflections database is also available under open licenses to Pro users. For more information about the creator and philosophy behind Taskusanakirja, visit our About page. See our Data Sources page for detailed information about the open-source data we use.

Still stuck? Drop a line to andrew@siilikuin.com

Remember: The Finnish language has 15 grammatical cases. Taskusanakirja has just one case: making your Finnish learning journey easier. 🇫🇮

Last updated: August 2025 | Version compatible with all releases v1.0.0 and up