B1 · Mittelstufe Kapitel 36

Participles as Adjectives

4 Gesamtregeln
48 Beispiele
1 Min.
Regeln in diesem Kapitel Schnelle Übung

Chapter in 30 Seconds

Turn actions into vivid descriptions by mastering Swedish participles as adjectives.

  • Form present participles using the -ande and -ende endings.
  • Identify and decline past participles to match noun gender and number.
  • Differentiate between active and passive descriptions in real-world contexts.
Paint with verbs: The art of Swedish descriptive participles.

Was du lernen wirst

Using present and past participles to describe nouns. This adds sophistication to descriptions.

  • Present Participle
    It's a verb-turned-adjective that describes an ongoing action or state without changing for gender or number.
  • Past Participle
    Think of it as a verb acting like an adjective to describe something that has already happened.
  • Participles as Adjectives
    Think of participles as 'verb-flavored adjectives' that describe either an ongoing action or a completed state.
  • Participle Usage
    Use -ande for 'doing' and -d/-t/-tt for 'done' to describe nouns like a native.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

  1. 1
    By the end you will be able to form present participles from any regular Swedish verb.
  2. 2
    By the end you will be able to correctly decline past participles to match 'en', 'ett', and plural nouns.
  3. 3
    By the end you will be able to describe a complex scene using both present and past participles naturally.

Wichtige Beispiele (8)

1

Han blev stående mitt i gatan.

He remained standing in the middle of the street.

Present Participle
2

Vi behöver en mer omfattande undersökning.

We need a more comprehensive (embracing) investigation.

Present Participle
3

Boken är skriven av en känd författare.

The book is written by a famous author.

Past Participle
4

De stulna cyklarna hittades igår.

The stolen bicycles were found yesterday.

Past Participle
5

Den skällande hunden väckte mig.

The barking dog woke me up.

Participles as Adjectives
6

De bifogade filerna är viktiga.

The attached files are important.

Participles as Adjectives
7

Den arbetande befolkningen ökar.

The working population is increasing.

Participle Usage
8

Huset är byggt av trä.

The house is built of wood.

Participle Usage

Tipps & Tricks (4)

🎯

The 'Som' Shortcut

If you're unsure how to form a participle, use 'som' + the verb. 'En sjungande fågel' = 'En fågel som sjunger'. This is often more natural in spoken Swedish!
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Present Participle
💡

The 'Ett' Test

If you're unsure of the ending, check if the noun is an 'ett' word. If it is, the ending almost always involves a '-t'.
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Past Participle
💡

The 'Ett' Rule

Always check the noun first. If it's an 'ett' word, your past participle MUST end in -t (stängt, målat, skrivet).
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Participles as Adjectives
💡

Check the Noun

Always look at the noun first. Is it en or ett? That tells you the ending.
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Participle Usage

Wichtige Vokabeln (7)

spännande exciting (present participle) leende smiling (present participle) låst locked (past participle) nygräddad freshly baked (past participle) intresserad interested (past participle) skrämmande scary/frightening (present participle) begagnad used/second-hand (past participle)

Real-World Preview

shopping-bag

At a Second-Hand Market

Review Summary

  • Verb Stem + -ande / -ende
  • Verb Stem + -d / -t / -en

Häufige Fehler

Past participles must agree with 'ett' nouns by changing the -d to a -t.

Wrong: Ett målad hus
Richtig: Ett målat hus

Using the present participle '-ande' means you ARE tiring to others. Use the past participle or adjective to describe your own state.

Wrong: Jag är tröttande
Richtig: Jag är trött / Jag är utmattad

Do not mix indefinite articles with definite noun forms just because a participle is present.

Wrong: En sjungande fågeln
Richtig: En sjungande fågel / Den sjungande fågeln

Next Steps

You've just leveled up your Swedish vocabulary significantly! Using participles is a hallmark of a B1 learner transitioning to B2. Bra jobbat!

Look around your room and describe 5 objects using a past participle (e.g., 'en låst dörr').

Read a Swedish news article and highlight every word ending in -ande or -ende.

Continue to: Complex Conjunctions

Schnelle Übung (10)

Fill in the correct present participle of 'tala'.

Han är en mycket ___ person.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: talande
We need the present participle to describe the person as 'speaking/talkative'.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Present Participle

Correct the mistake in this sentence.

Find and fix the mistake:

De leendena barnen leker.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: De leende barnen leker.
The present participle is indeclinable and does not take plural endings.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Present Participle

Correct the error in the sentence.

Find and fix the mistake:

De stängd dörrarna.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: stängda
Dörrarna is plural, so the past participle must end in -da.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Participles as Adjectives

Fix the error in this sentence: 'Jag har skriven ett brev.'

Find and fix the mistake:

Jag har skriven ett brev.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Jag har skrivit ett brev.
With 'har', you must use the supinum (-it), not the participle.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Past Participle

Fix the error.

Find and fix the mistake:

Jag har stängd dörren.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Jag har stängt dörren
Supine form needed.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Participle Usage

Fill in the correct form of 'måla' (Group 1).

Huset är ___ .

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: målat
'Huset' is an ett-word, so we use the -at ending.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Past Participle

Fill in the correct participle form.

Dörren är ___ (stänga).

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: stängd
Dörren is an 'en' word.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Participle Usage

Fill in the correct past participle of 'måla'.

Ett ___ hus.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: målat
Hus is an 'ett' word, so the participle must end in -t.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Participles as Adjectives

Choose the correct form.

Huset är ___ (bygga) av trä.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: byggt
Huset is an 'ett' word.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Participle Usage

Fix the error.

Find and fix the mistake:

Ett stängd fönster.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Ett stängt fönster
Ett-word needs -t.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Participle Usage

Score: /10

Häufige Fragen (6)

Yes, but only in spelling based on the verb. Verbs ending in -a take -ande, while others (mostly short verbs) take -ende. They function identically.
Yes! For example, en studerande (a student) or de sökande (the applicants). This is very common in formal Swedish.
It depends on the noun. 'Stängd' is for en-words (en dörr är stängd), and 'stängt' is for ett-words (ett fönster är stängt).
Because 'skrivit' is the supinum form used only with 'ha'. To describe yourself or a state, you must use the participle 'skriven'.
It depends on the noun. Use målad for 'en' words (en målad dörr) and målat for 'ett' words (ett målat hus).
No. Swedish uses the present tense for that. Jag äter means both 'I eat' and 'I am eating'.
Vorheriges Kapitel
Reported Speech
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Complex Conjunctions
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