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LANGUAGE AND CULTURE

Swedish word of the day: klok

If you want to sound wise when speaking Swedish, today's word is a good one to know.

Swedish word of the day: klok
Image: nito103/Depositphotos

Klok means 'clever', 'intelligent', or 'wise'. It might be a familiar adjective to you if you know other Scandinavian or Germanic languages: it has its roots in Old Norse (klókr) and corresponding words exist today in Norwegian (klok) and German (klug), for example.

You can hear how klok sounds in the clip below:

Swedish has other words for 'clever', including intelligent and smart, but klok has a strong connotation of taking logical, wise decisions and generally showing good judgment, as opposed to, for example, an exceptional talent for memorization or quick-thinking. 

A person or group of people can be klok, for example min kollega är väldigt klok (my colleague is very wise) or regeringen har varit klok (the government has been clever), and an object or concept can also be klok, for example kloka ord (wise words), ett klokt förslag (a wise suggestion), or en klok idé (a clever idea).

And from around the 15th century up until the 20th, the terms klok gumma and klok gubbe (literally 'wisewoman' or 'wise old man') were used to describe folk healers (also known as 'cunning folk' in English). These were generally older members of communities who practised folk magic and worked as healers. Some of them faced punishment and prison terms for their actions, including Gotland klok gumma Brita Biörn, who said she had learned her skills on a visit to the underworld.

But back to the word klok as we use it today, and it's worth knowing that something strange happens when you negate it.

The phrase inte klok literally means “not wise/clever”, but when you hear a sentence like “du är inte klok!” it would usually translate into English as “you're crazy!” This might be confusing the first time you hear it, but makes a lot of sense if you think of klok as relating to good judgment rather than intelligence per se.

Examples

Det var ett klokt beslut att inte köra

It was a wise decision not to drive

Är du inte klok?

Are you crazy?

Do you have a favourite Swedish word you would like to nominate for our word of the day series? Get in touch by email or if you are a Member of The Local, log in to comment below.

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SWEDISH WORD OF THE DAY

Swedish word of the day: shit

Before you get offended by this potty-mouthed word of the day, we should probably tell you that this English swear word is a lot milder in Swedish.

Swedish word of the day: shit

The word shit in Swedish is, as you may have guessed, a loanword from English. It has its roots in Middle English schit and scythe, meaning “dung”, which in turn originated in a Proto-Indo-European word meaning to split, divide or separate.

There are a number of words in other European languages which have the same root, like schijt in Dutch, Scheiße in German, skidt in Danish, skit/skitt in Norwegian and the Swedish word skit.

So, why does Swedish have two words for shit? Essentially, they’re used (and pronounced) in different ways.

Shit, pronounced similarly to the English word but in a Swedish accent, is essentially only used as an exclamation, whether that’s for something good or bad, and most adults in Sweden wouldn’t bat an eyelid if they heard a small child saying it. 

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It normally indicates some sort of surprise or shock, similar to “wow” or “oh my god” in English. You might also hear it in the phrase shit pommes frites, which literally translates as “shit, French fries!” which a Swedish speaker might use to express surprise: shit pommes frites, har du fått en ny mobil?! (“shit French fries, have you got a new phone?!”)

If you accidentally bumped into someone in a queue, for example, you could say shit, förlåt (shit, sorry), and if you came to some sort of realisation, you could say oj shit! (oh shit!). In general, saying shit would be acceptable even in professional situations with Swedes.

Skit, on the other hand, is pronounced with the sort of whooshing sj or sk-sound at the beginning, kind of like the word wheat, but with a whistle at the start.

It’s used in Swedish in broadly the same ways you’d use shit in English, both in the sense of actual faeces (as a noun and a verb) but also as a vulgar way to describe some sort of undesirable material or thing: jag har tröttnat på den här skiten (I’m tired of this shit) or ta bort din skit från bordet (take your shit off the table).

You may also have come across it in the term skit samma (the milder variant would be strunt samma), which can be translated as “never mind” or “forget it”, or skit också if something unfortunate happens (skit också, jag missade bussen – damn it, I missed the bus).

You can also describe something as being skit, use it in phrases like jag förstår inte ett skit (I don’t understand shit) and as an intensifier: han bankade skiten ur honom (he beat the shit out of him).

In contrast to shit, skit is generally considered less acceptable to use in a professional situation… although you will probably still hear children say it.

Example sentences:

Oj shit, spelar du in det här? 

Oh shit, are you recording this?

Ska vi inte åka snart? Shit, ja, klockan är redan 12!

Shouldn’t we leave soon? Shit, yeah, it’s already 12 o’clock!

Villa, Volvo, Vovve: The Local’s Word Guide to Swedish Life, written by The Local’s journalists, is available to order. Head to lysforlag.com/vvv to read more about it. It is also possible to buy your copy from Amazon USAmazon UKBokus or Adlibris.

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