swedish

swedish — adjective

1. refers to anything from the northern European country of Sweden, including the n

1.adjectiveA2
Definition

refers to anything from the northern European country of Sweden, including the nation's inhabitants, traditions, and language

Example

Dahlia bought a stylish Swedish sofa for her new apartment in Taipei.

collocation: Swedish + noun (sofa, design, furniture)

The Swedish winter can be very dark, with only a few hours of daylight.

Common collocations
  • Swedish design
  • Swedish culture
  • Swedish government
  • Swedish language
  • Swedish people
Synonyms
  • Scandinavian

    broader term covering Norway, Denmark, and sometimes Iceland and Finland in addition to Sweden

  • Nordic

    even broader, including Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark as a cultural and political region

Usage Note

Always capitalize Swedish because it comes from the proper noun Sweden.

Common Mistakes

She married a Swedish.
She married a Swede.' or 'She married a Swedish man.
Swedish is an adjective; use 'a Swede' for a person.

swedish — noun

Word family

  • Swede
    nounA2
  • Sweden
    proper nounA2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Swedish, Scandinavian, and Nordic all describe the northern European region but differ in scope. Swedish refers specifically to Sweden — its people, language, and culture. Scandinavian traditionally covers Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, which share closely related languages and historical ties. Nordic is the broadest term, encompassing Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and their associated territories (Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and Åland). For example, IKEA is a Swedish company that is also Scandinavian in style; the Nordic Council includes five member countries, of which Sweden is just one. Use Swedish when you mean only Sweden, Scandinavian for the three closely linked kingdoms, and Nordic for the wider cultural and political region.

ScandinavianNordic

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • in Swedish
  • the Swedish

Prepositions

Etymology

Old NorseDutchEnglish

Swedish is formed from Swede (a person from Sweden) plus the suffix -ish, meaning 'belonging to' or 'from.' The word Swede came into English through Middle Dutch and Middle Low German, ultimately tracing back to the Old Norse svíar — the name of the ancient North Germanic tribe that lived in what is now central Sweden. The suffix -ish is a common Germanic ending used to form adjectives from nouns (as in English, Danish, or Scottish).