What you will learn
You can say the cars, the houses and the apples with the definite plural, as in bilarna, husen and äpplena. You also learn the four forms of a noun together.
Four forms of a noun
Read the columns as indefinite singular, definite singular, indefinite plural and definite plural. Indefinite forms introduce or count things. Definite forms refer to the particular things you mean.
| A | The | Plural | The plural | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| en bil | bilen | bilar | bilarna | car |
| en flaska | flaskan | flaskor | flaskorna | bottle |
| en banan | bananen | bananer | bananerna | banana |
| en sko | skon | skor | skorna | shoe |
| ett äpple | äpplet | äpplen | äpplena | apple |
| ett hus | huset | hus | husen | house |
| en lärare | läraren | lärare | lärarna | teacher |
The definite plural is built from the plural you already know.
| The plural pattern | Add | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -or | -na | flaskor, flaskorna |
| -ar | -na | bilar, bilarna |
| -er | -na | bananer, bananerna |
| -r | -na | skor, skorna |
| the plural ending -n | -a | äpplen, äpplena |
| no ending, an ett-word | -en | hus, husen |
| no ending, an en-word with -are | drop the e, add -na | lärare, lärarna |
Use the plural pattern, not just the final letter. The n in äpplen is a plural ending, so add -a. The n in barn is already part of the singular ett barn. Its plural has no added ending, so the definite plural is barnen. The irregular pair män, männen must also be learned together.
Forms that change more
| Plural | The plural | English |
|---|---|---|
| män | männen | the men |
| rum | rummen | the rooms |
| fönster | fönstren | the windows |
| nummer | numren | the numbers |
| kilo | kilona | the kilos |
| kilometer | kilometrarna | the kilometers |
| böcker | böckerna | the books |
| bröder | bröderna | the brothers |
Män becomes männen. Rum doubles the m, so rummen and sovrummen. Fönster and nummer lose an e. Kilo takes -na, and kilometer becomes kilometrarna. Böckerna, bröderna and döttrarna follow the rule, but their plural has already changed its vowel. The vocabulary page lists the definite plural of every noun you know.
When to use it
Use the definite plural for things that you and the listener both know about, just as you use bilen for one car. In an ordinary counting phrase such as två hundar, use the indefinite plural. To identify a particular group you can say de två hundarna, the two dogs. Do not write två hundarna on its own.
| Swedish | English |
|---|---|
| Barnen är i skolan. | The children are at school. |
| Var är böckerna? | Where are the books? |
| Kenji tittar på bilderna. | Kenji is looking at the pictures. |
| Äpplena kostar trettio kronor. | The apples cost 30 kronor. |
| Alla gästerna kom klockan sex. | All the guests came at six. |
| Ines har två hundar. Hundarna är små. | Ines has two dogs. The dogs are small. |
Alla gästerna means all the guests, the ones you are talking about.
Common mistakes
| Not like this | Like this | Why |
|---|---|---|
| bilerna | bilarna | Keep the plural bilar and add -na. |
| husena | husen | Hus has no plural ending, so it takes -en. |
| två hundarna | två hundar | In an ordinary counting phrase, use the indefinite plural. |
| skoerna | skorna | Keep the plural skor and add -na. |
| barna | barnen | Barn has no added plural ending. Add -en for the definite plural. |