In the Scandinavian languages of which Swedish is a part, all nouns have a form. The adjectives also have a form that depends on the word behind them. In this article I will explain which form to choose if you are going to write a Swedish sentence. Before reading this, I recommend that you read the grammar about the plural in Swedish. In it I explain the difference between the definite and indefinite form of the noun.
The indefinite forms
A noun that is indefinite can be a and or ettword. There are no hard rules, most words have to be memorized.
And words
En stor bok girder på golvet = A large book is lying on the floor.
RULE: If the noun is an en-word then it has an adjective no separate output.
ett words
Ett dumps tåg är vackert. = A big train is beautiful.
RULE: If the noun is an ett word then the adjective has one -t- as output.
You can see that it is therefore dump, but also vackert. Both words say something about tåg and so should be conjugated as an ett word.
Plural
Vita katter sitter utanför fönstret = White cats sit outside the window.
RULE: When a noun is plural, the adjective gets a- a- as output.
- and blå fisk = a blue fish
- ett blått bord = a blue table
- blåa katter = blue cats
There is also a masculine form with the adjectives. This one ends in one e. This form is used when the noun indicates a masculine person. It can also stand for a masculine proper name.
Käre Hessel! = Dear Hessel!
den gamle kungen = the old king
Change of final consonant in the ett form.
Not all adjectives with -t must be spelled the same way. Here is a list of words that have a different ending.
1. Adjectives placed on a consonant+ t end up losing the t at the ett form.
svart / svart / svarta
2. As the adjective on a consonant + d ends then the d drops out and one comes t.
felt / felt / vilda
3. The adjective ends with a vowel + d, then it becomes tt and no dt.
god / gott / goda
rod / rött / röda
4. If the adjective ends with a vowel, one will appear double t
ny / nytt / nya
rå / rått / råa
5. Adjectives ending in and, lose the n.
may / moget / mogna
subjects / subject / subject na
Deviating form in plural
Also in the plural there are words that are spelled in a different way. There are also rules for this.
1. End the adjective el or there, then the e away.
ankle / ankle / ankle
vacker / vackert / vackra
2. Ends the adjective in and, then the e away.
subjects / subject / subject na
may / moget / mogna
The adjectives ending in an unstressed vowel are unbreakable.
ringa
öde
enastående
Liten
Liten is an irregular adjective. It means small.
indefinite singular form:liten / litet
indefinite plural: små
Certain form singular: lilla
Plural definite form:små
The definite form of the adjective
The rules for the definite form are very different from those for the indefinite form.
Below three example sentences with explanations.
- Det stora tåget reser till Utrecht = The big train goes to Utrecht
- Den stora bilen är från Portugal = The big car comes from Portugal
- De stora katterna sitter på bordet = The big cats are sitting on the table
What stands out?
- Every form of the adjective ends with a.
- Det = ett word, den = and word and de = for the plural.
- There is a double provision because both den / det / de make that it concerns a specific thing (the train, not a train), also the suffix for the words (-en with and-words, -et with ett- words, -na in plural)
But beware: If it is not det, den, or de, but for example Hendriks, Johans, Margarethas, Mina, Min, Ditt, Vårt, etc.
then you should NOT put the noun in the specified form.
- Hendriks stora bil = Hendrik’s big car
- Mina blåa ögon = My blue eyes
- Margarethas dumps hus = Margarethas big house
Because this is very different from Dutch, this may seem difficult, but the only thing to consider is whether you are talking about a specific or an indefinite noun. And then, if it is indefinite, you see whether it is en, ett or plural. Then choose the correct conjugation. If it concerns a particular noun, you also check whether it is en, ett or plural, but now you choose den, det, or de and you conjugate the adjective with an a after it. If you do not use de, den, or det but, for example, Davids or Hennes, then the noun is not in the specified form.