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SWEDISH WORD OF THE DAY

Swedish word of the day: nja

This little word can help you navigate tricky social situations with ease in Swedish.

Swedish word of the day: nja
Will this help you sound fluent? Nja... Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond

Nja is a useful word to have in your arsenal.

It’s a jumble of the words nej (no) and ja (yes), which you can use when you don’t want to express an opinion on something outright. That might be because you don’t have the information to give a concrete answer yet, or because you just don’t want to pick a side. There’s a similar construction in German: jein, from ja (yes) and nein (no).

  • Don’t miss any of our Swedish words and expressions of the day by downloading The Local’s new app (available on Apple and Android) and then selecting the Swedish Word of the Day in your Notification options via the User button

So it might express hesitation, doubt, or disagreement. Depending on the context, the English equivalent might be something like “We-ell…” or “yes and no…”. It’s a perfect word to pull out if you’re put on the spot in a debate and need to give a non-committal response.

Nja is often used like a counterpart of jo. Jo means “yes”, when answering a question posed in the negative, for example: Talar du inte svenska? Jo (Don’t you speak Swedish? Yes, I do). And nja can be used to respond negatively to questions, without giving an outright denial: Talar du svenska? Nja, men… (Do you speak Swedish? Well, sort of, but…)

If you’re trying to work out what Swedish-speaking friends really mean with their nja, be aware that it’s usually slightly closer to the “no” end of the “yes-no” spectrum.

To really emphasise the doubt or hesitation, you can draw out the word for longer: njaaaa

Examples

Men ni är väl vänner? – Nja, inte vänner direkt.

But you’re friends, right? – Well, not really ‘friends’.

Alla tycker ju om kaffe – Nja, jag tycker bättre om te

Everyone likes coffee – Well, I like tea more.

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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SWEDISH WORD OF THE DAY

Swedish word of the day: kondis

Today’s word has two meanings: one is healthy, the other less so.

Swedish word of the day: kondis

Kondis is a great example of a Swedish slang word ending in -is, which essentially is the shortened version of a longer word.

Somewhat confusingly, in the case of kondis, there are actually two similar words which have both been shortened in this way, resulting in one word with two different meanings.

The first meaning comes from konditori, the Swedish version of a patisserie or bakery, which you might recognise from the German word Konditor (a confectioner or pastry chef), originally from the Latin word condītor, which referred to a person who preserved, pickled or seasoned food.

  • Don’t miss any of our Swedish words and expressions of the day by downloading The Local’s app (available on Apple and Android) and then selecting the Swedish Word of the Day in your Notification options via the User button

The word kondis can either refer to a konditori itself, or to the type of baked goods and pastries they offer. A kondis differs somewhat from a bageri (bakery), which is more likely to focus on savoury or rustic baked goods, like bread (although many kondis also sell bread, and many bagerier will serve some sort of cake or sweet treat too). 

A kondis is also more likely to have some area where you can sit and enjoy your food on-site, perhaps with a cup of tea or coffee, while bakeries are more likely to be take-away only.

The second meaning of kondis is a shortened version of the word kondition, which translates roughly as your endurance or fitness. If you’re good at running, you might be described as having bra kondition or bra kondis, roughly equal to being fit. 

Another similar slang word for this in Swedish would be flås, which technically translates to “panting”, but can be used in the same way as kondis to describe physical endurance or fitness.

Example sentences:

Om man äter för mycket kondis kan man få dålig kondis.

If you eat too many pastries you could end up less fit.

Sprang du hela vägen hit? Du måste ha bra kondis!

Did you run the whole way here? You must be in good shape.

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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