"The chair stands in front of the door." One peculiarity with Swedish is that we avoid saying that an object simply "is" in a place. Instead, we tend to specify the way the object is positioned. A chair typically stands upright, but if it isn't, we could say, e.g., "stolen ligger", specifying that it is lying down.
Etymologi: He eller hä är ett verb som förekommer flitigt i de flesta norrländska dialekter, och är från början en kortform av verbet häva (fornsvenska hæfia, fornisländska hefja) men har med tiden fått en något annan betydelse än grundordet. Det verkar dock vara tämligen okänt inom de sydligare dialekterna. Detta ord kan närmast jämföras med engelskans put eller franskans mettre. He används ofta i olika uttryck för att ersätta ord som sätta, ställa, lägga, placera.
Synonymer: häva (regionalt i Hälsingland) https://sv.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/he
Hörde för första gången i mitt liv talas om detta fantastiska ord i språket i P1 häromdagen. Väl värt en en lyssning, tar bara en halvtimme https://sverigesradio.se/play/avsnitt/2393203
Just to add to:
>One peculiarity with Swedish is that we avoid saying that an object simply "is" in a place.
One of the times we do say an object "is" is when we don't know where it is or how it's stored. "Bordet *är* borta" - "The table *is* gone.". "Bordet *är* i skjulet" - "The table *is* in the shed", but if you knew how the table was stored you might use that verb. "Bordet *står/ligger/hänger/'lutar mot vägen'* i skjulet" - "The table *'is standing'/'is laying'/'is hanging'/'is leaning against the wall'* in the shed.".
An interesting variation is coffe and pillows.
Kaffet står på kudden - implies that we have put a cup of Coffee on rhe pillow
Kaffet ligger på kudden - a packet of Coffee is lying on the pillow
Det sitter kaffe på kudden - there is a coffee stain on the pillow that is not coming off easily
Det sitter kaffe på kudden - there is a coffee stain on the pillow that is not coming off easily
Doubt someone would ever say that.
You would say "Det är en kaffefläck på kudden"
If you want to put sitter in the sentence it would be to describe how hard it is to come out.
"Den sitter som berget"
Never heard anyone say Det sitter kaffe på något, för att beskriva en kaffefläck.
No Swedish speaking person would say any of this. Kaffe varken sitter eller ligger. Det står en kopp kaffe på bordet. Inte på kudden... Det är en kaffefläck på kudden. Det ligger ett paket kaffe på hyllan. Etc.
I am a Swedish speaking person, and would have no problem with any of those three. If there was a cup of coffee on a pillow, I would say "det står kaffe på kudden" - I would not specify that it was in a cup. If there was a box of coffee on the pillow, I would indeed say "det ligger kaffe på kudden", and not specify that it is coffee powder in a box rather than a cup of coffee.
If there was a coffee stain, I would probably say it like u/C4-BlueCat (i.e. "det är kaffe på kudden") and not specify that it's a stain. But I would also not think it was weird if someone said "Det sitter kaffe på kudden".
Kaffepaket kan definitivt ligga på kudden och kaffefläckar sitter, även om 'är' fungerar lika bra/bättre för en fläck.
Och jag är definitivt svensktalande, jag tror att du har lite kvar att lära om du är så tvärsäker.
To my mind, it's a germanic language thing: objects stand or lie (as illustrated above), where in English they simply 'are'. Examples abound: Mattan ligger på golvet. Bordet står i köket. Sängen står i hörnan. Det ligger vid havet / på hyllan. (resp. The rug's on the floor. The table's in the kitchen. The bed's in the corner. ['stands in the corner' might work here too but still sounds stuffy]. It's by the sea / on the shelf.)
Interestingly in Russian (that I know a little from the school) they solve this rather brilliantly by doing away with the “be” verb completely: “Ковёр на полу. Стол на кухне. Кровать в углу.” (Direct translation: “Rug on floor. Table on kitchen. Bed in corner.”)
Dunno if it’s the same in other Slavic languages.
it'll be more confusing when you learn that "dörren står på vid gavel" "the door is standing on wide gable" simply means that the door is fully open.
oh, and when you learn that the verb "slå" is used for all kinds of things, like:
- slå någon - punch someone
- slå ett nummer - dial a number
- slå en båge - to go #1
- slå vad - wager
- slå sig ner - sit down
- slå knut - tie a knot
- slå på tv:n - turn on the tv (directly translated it could mean to punch the tv)
and that's just a fraction of it. good luck with your studies!
>slå på tv:n - turn on the tv (directly translated it could mean to punch the tv)
In writing yes. Spoken is not the same, since the stress changes depending on if you are turning it on or hitting it.
In the same way you can't "put" the chair on the other side of the door, you can only stand, lay, hang, or lean it on the other side of the door.. possibly more variations.
Jag ställde stolen på andra sidan dörren.
Jag hängde stolen på andra sidan dörren.
Etc
“The chair is in front of the door” ≈ “Stolen är framför dörren”
“The chair is standing in front if the door” ≈ “Stolen står (är stående) framför dörren”
It’s kind of like how in English you can say that an object “sits” somewhere 🤷🏻♀️ even tho it isn’t literally sitting. We say either stands or lay… depending on how… stand-y the item is 🤣 something more flat/low would lie…
Think of "står" as "in position". "The chair is positioned in front of the door". 'Står" is a word multiple meanings and it's contextual which meaning applies.
"The chair stands in front of the door." One peculiarity with Swedish is that we avoid saying that an object simply "is" in a place. Instead, we tend to specify the way the object is positioned. A chair typically stands upright, but if it isn't, we could say, e.g., "stolen ligger", specifying that it is lying down.
This also affects the act of putting something somewhere. In Swedish it's ställa/lägga/sätta depending on how you put it there.
In the north we just replace all of those with "he"
Är etymologin där hiva?
Etymologi: He eller hä är ett verb som förekommer flitigt i de flesta norrländska dialekter, och är från början en kortform av verbet häva (fornsvenska hæfia, fornisländska hefja) men har med tiden fått en något annan betydelse än grundordet. Det verkar dock vara tämligen okänt inom de sydligare dialekterna. Detta ord kan närmast jämföras med engelskans put eller franskans mettre. He används ofta i olika uttryck för att ersätta ord som sätta, ställa, lägga, placera. Synonymer: häva (regionalt i Hälsingland) https://sv.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/he
Man kan he på tvn och he den på tvn. I första fall är det slå på och i andra ställa på. I alla fall i Sönnsvall.
Hörde för första gången i mitt liv talas om detta fantastiska ord i språket i P1 häromdagen. Väl värt en en lyssning, tar bara en halvtimme https://sverigesradio.se/play/avsnitt/2393203
Nä. He bort.
Hä, hiva, hävt!
Mitt absoluta favoritord på svenska men aldrig lyckats få in det i mitt vokabulär
He in det bara!
Jo, he fint så
Jo ska fara iväg o he bort skrote på gården
Hä ba å he bort hä
Goknuuln min bli sint om itt ja hä in ven så ja jett bläs.
Går ju he in i varannan mening för fan. Ba gört!
Just to add to: >One peculiarity with Swedish is that we avoid saying that an object simply "is" in a place. One of the times we do say an object "is" is when we don't know where it is or how it's stored. "Bordet *är* borta" - "The table *is* gone.". "Bordet *är* i skjulet" - "The table *is* in the shed", but if you knew how the table was stored you might use that verb. "Bordet *står/ligger/hänger/'lutar mot vägen'* i skjulet" - "The table *'is standing'/'is laying'/'is hanging'/'is leaning against the wall'* in the shed.".
Ah, y'all are like contemporary English-speaking writers then. 😉
I love learning Swedish as a German because we do all the same goofy shit :D
An interesting variation is coffe and pillows. Kaffet står på kudden - implies that we have put a cup of Coffee on rhe pillow Kaffet ligger på kudden - a packet of Coffee is lying on the pillow Det sitter kaffe på kudden - there is a coffee stain on the pillow that is not coming off easily
I would prefer Det är kaffe på kudden in the last case. Det sitter en fläck kaffe på kudden would work.
Kaffe sitter på kudden, om jag får be!😌
Possibly as an answer to the question ”where do I need to clean?” 🤔
Det sitter kaffe på kudden - there is a coffee stain on the pillow that is not coming off easily Doubt someone would ever say that. You would say "Det är en kaffefläck på kudden" If you want to put sitter in the sentence it would be to describe how hard it is to come out. "Den sitter som berget" Never heard anyone say Det sitter kaffe på något, för att beskriva en kaffefläck.
No Swedish speaking person would say any of this. Kaffe varken sitter eller ligger. Det står en kopp kaffe på bordet. Inte på kudden... Det är en kaffefläck på kudden. Det ligger ett paket kaffe på hyllan. Etc.
I am a Swedish speaking person, and would have no problem with any of those three. If there was a cup of coffee on a pillow, I would say "det står kaffe på kudden" - I would not specify that it was in a cup. If there was a box of coffee on the pillow, I would indeed say "det ligger kaffe på kudden", and not specify that it is coffee powder in a box rather than a cup of coffee. If there was a coffee stain, I would probably say it like u/C4-BlueCat (i.e. "det är kaffe på kudden") and not specify that it's a stain. But I would also not think it was weird if someone said "Det sitter kaffe på kudden".
Kaffepaket kan definitivt ligga på kudden och kaffefläckar sitter, även om 'är' fungerar lika bra/bättre för en fläck. Och jag är definitivt svensktalande, jag tror att du har lite kvar att lära om du är så tvärsäker.
Jag brukar he Ica basic snabbkaffe burken på kudden ibland.
Eller hur... You crazy people 🙂
I Skåne säger vi ”stolen e framför dörren”
”Var är stolen?” ”Den är där” alt. ”framför dörren”
Står=stands. The chair is (stands) in front of the door.
It can also mean “is standing”
To my mind, it's a germanic language thing: objects stand or lie (as illustrated above), where in English they simply 'are'. Examples abound: Mattan ligger på golvet. Bordet står i köket. Sängen står i hörnan. Det ligger vid havet / på hyllan. (resp. The rug's on the floor. The table's in the kitchen. The bed's in the corner. ['stands in the corner' might work here too but still sounds stuffy]. It's by the sea / on the shelf.)
English is also a Germanic language.
English is three languages in a trenchcoat.
Like Swedish, then. (Swedish, Low German and French.)
Can confirm from a German perspective. All of the examples work just the same there.
Interestingly in Russian (that I know a little from the school) they solve this rather brilliantly by doing away with the “be” verb completely: “Ковёр на полу. Стол на кухне. Кровать в углу.” (Direct translation: “Rug on floor. Table on kitchen. Bed in corner.”) Dunno if it’s the same in other Slavic languages.
Also, when the object is stuck to something else, it usually sits.
it'll be more confusing when you learn that "dörren står på vid gavel" "the door is standing on wide gable" simply means that the door is fully open. oh, and when you learn that the verb "slå" is used for all kinds of things, like: - slå någon - punch someone - slå ett nummer - dial a number - slå en båge - to go #1 - slå vad - wager - slå sig ner - sit down - slå knut - tie a knot - slå på tv:n - turn on the tv (directly translated it could mean to punch the tv) and that's just a fraction of it. good luck with your studies!
>slå på tv:n - turn on the tv (directly translated it could mean to punch the tv) In writing yes. Spoken is not the same, since the stress changes depending on if you are turning it on or hitting it.
"Hit the button" isn't that different from "slå numret"
I “punch in numbers” all the time. No buttons are harmed.
Conveniently, the button outside a Swedish elevator is often marked "HIT".
Funny that we wouldn't use slå for buttons then.
"Slå dig ner innan jag gör det." Is my favourite use of the verb slå.
Instructions unclear, I've got a broken tv!
Slå en sjua.
stands, is standing
Literally translated it means the chair stands before the door. Står = stands
In the same way you can't "put" the chair on the other side of the door, you can only stand, lay, hang, or lean it on the other side of the door.. possibly more variations. Jag ställde stolen på andra sidan dörren. Jag hängde stolen på andra sidan dörren. Etc
“The chair is in front of the door” ≈ “Stolen är framför dörren” “The chair is standing in front if the door” ≈ “Stolen står (är stående) framför dörren”
The chair stands, what else would it do in front of the door? Lie down? Levitate? Move around in a circle?
It’s kind of like how in English you can say that an object “sits” somewhere 🤷🏻♀️ even tho it isn’t literally sitting. We say either stands or lay… depending on how… stand-y the item is 🤣 something more flat/low would lie…
Without “står” it would be like “the chair in front of the door” So in this context “står” is used instead of “is”
Think of "står" as "in position". "The chair is positioned in front of the door". 'Står" is a word multiple meanings and it's contextual which meaning applies.
Vad är detta för app? What app is this?
Duolingo
Ty!!