Mitä sinä harrastat?

You’ve probably heard the noun harrastus before, right? It means ‘hobby’. But what about the verb harrastaa? It’s a verb to which there’s no clear equivalent in English. You could say it means something like “to have as a hobby” or “to do as a hobby”. I’ve written down some examples on how to use the verb.

harrastaa + partitiivi

Mitä sinä harrastat vapaa-ajallasi? = What do you do in your free time?

Minä harrastan jalkapalloa. = I play football.

Harrastatko sinä jotain? = Do you have a hobby?

Hän harrastaa uintia. = He swims. / His hobby is swimming.

Etkö sinä harrasta mitään? = Don’t you have any hobbies?

Harrastan piirtämistä. = I draw. / My hobby is drawing.

Moni suomalainen harrastaa juoksemista. = Many Finns run [in their free time / as a hobby / etc.].

Harrastan tietokonepelejä, ulkoilua, kitaransoittoa ja joogaa. = My hobbies include computer games, being outdoors, playing the guitar and yoga.

Harrastin lapsena jääkiekkoa. = I used to play ice-hockey as a child.

Harrastitko sinä lapsena jotain? [jotain = something] = Did you have a hobby of some kind as a child?

En ehdi harrastaa mitään. = I dont have time to have any hobbies.

Olisi kivaa harrastaa jotain. = It would be nice to have a hobby.