Editing Swedish language (section)

==Grammar==
{{Main|Swedish grammar}}
The standard word order is, as in most [[Germanic languages]], [[V2 word order|V2]], which means that the [[finite verb]] (V) appears in the second position (2) of a declarative [[main clause]]. [[Swedish morphology]] is similar to English; that is, words have comparatively few [[inflections]]. Swedish has two [[grammatical gender|genders]]<ref>{{cite book |last1=Svanlund |first1=Jan |title=Språkriktighetsboken |date=2005 |publisher=Norstedts |location=Stockholm |isbn=978-91-1-304370-8 |page=73 |edition=2nd}}</ref> and is generally seen to have two [[grammatical cases]] – [[nominative]] and [[genitive]] (except for pronouns that, as in English, also are inflected in the [[Object (grammar)|object]] form) – although it is debated if the genitive in Swedish should be seen as a genitive case or just the nominative plus the so-called genitive ''s'', then seen as a [[clitic]]. Swedish has two [[grammatical number]]s – [[plural]] and [[Grammatical number|singular]]. [[Adjectives]] have discrete [[Comparison (grammar)|comparative and superlative]] forms and are also inflected according to gender, number and [[definiteness]]. The definiteness of nouns is marked primarily through [[suffixes]] (endings), complemented with separate definite and indefinite [[article (grammar)|articles]]. The [[prosody (linguistics)|prosody]] features both [[stress (linguistics)|stress]] and in most dialects tonal qualities. The language has a comparatively large [[vowel]] inventory. Swedish is also notable for the [[voiceless dorso-palatal velar fricative]], a highly variable consonant [[phoneme]].

Swedish [[noun]]s and [[adjective]]s are declined in [[grammatical gender|genders]] as well as [[grammatical number|number]]. Nouns are of [[common gender]] (''en'' form) or [[neuter gender]] (''ett'' form).<ref>{{Harvnb|Granberry|1991|pp=18–19}}</ref> The gender determines the declension of the [[adjective]]s. For example, the word ''fisk'' ("fish") is a noun of common gender (''en fisk'') and can have the following forms:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
! Singular
! Plural
|-
! Indefinite form
| ''fisk''
| ''fiskar''
|-
! Definite form
| ''fisken''
| ''fiskarna''
|}

The definite singular form of a noun is created by adding a suffix (''-en'', ''-n'', ''-et'' or ''-t''), depending on its gender and if the noun ends in a vowel or not. The definite articles ''den'', ''det'', and ''de'' are used for variations to the definitiveness of a noun. They can double as [[demonstrative]] [[pronoun]]s or [[Determiner (class)|demonstrative determiners]] when used with [[adverb]]s such as ''här'' ("here") or ''där'' ("there") to form ''den/det här (can also be "denna/detta")'' ("this"), ''de här (can also be "dessa")'' ("these"), ''den/det där'' ("that"), and ''de där'' ("those"). For example, ''den där fisken'' means "that fish" and refers to a specific fish; ''den fisken'' is less definite and means "that fish" in a more abstract sense, such as that set of fish; while ''fisken'' means "the fish". In certain cases, the definite form indicates possession, e. g., ''jag måste tvätta hår'''et''''' ("I must wash ''my'' hair").<ref name="Haugen"/>

[[Adjective]]s are inflected in two declensions – indefinite and definite – and they must match the noun they modify in gender and number. The indefinite neuter and plural forms of an adjective are usually created by adding a suffix (''-t'' or ''-a'') to the common form of the adjective, e. g., ''en grön stol'' (a green chair), ''ett grönt hus'' (a green house), and ''gröna stolar'' ("green chairs"). The definite form of an adjective is identical to the indefinite plural form, e. g., ''den gröna stolen'' ("the green chair"), ''det gröna huset'' ("the green house"), and ''de gröna stolarna'' ("the green chairs").<ref name="Haugen">{{Harvnb|Haugen|2009}}</ref>

Swedish [[pronoun]]s are similar to those of English. Besides the two natural genders ''han'' and ''hon'' ("he" and "she"), there are also the two [[grammatical gender]]s ''den'' and ''det'', usually termed [[Gender in Danish and Swedish|common and neuter]]. In recent years, a [[gender-neutral]] pronoun ''hen'' has been introduced, particularly in literary Swedish. Unlike the nouns, pronouns have an additional [[object (linguistics)|object]] form, derived from the old [[dative]] form. ''Hon'', for example, has the following nominative, possessive, and object forms:<ref name="Haugen"/>

:''hon'' – ''hennes'' – ''henne''

Swedish also uses third-person possessive [[reflexive pronoun|reflexive pronouns]] that refer to the subject in a clause, a trait that is restricted to North Germanic languages:

:''Anna gav Maria sin bok.''; "Anna gave Maria her [Anna's] book." (reflexive)
:''Anna gav Maria hennes bok.''; "Anna gave Maria her [Maria's] book." (not reflexive)

Swedish used to have a [[genitive]] that was placed at the end of the head of a noun phrase. In modern Swedish, it has become an [[enclitic]] ''-s'', which attaches to the end of the noun phrase, rather than the noun itself.<ref>{{Harvnb|Hultman|2003|pp=70, 212–213}}</ref>

:''hästen''; "the horse" – ''hästens'' "the horse's"
:''hästen på den blommande ängens svarta man''; "the horse in the flowering meadow's black mane"

In formal written language, it used to be considered correct to place the genitive ''-s'' after the head of the noun phrase (''hästen''), though this is today considered dated, and different grammatical constructions are often used.<ref>{{Harvnb|Hultman|2003|p=213}}</ref>

Verbs are [[Grammatical conjugation|conjugated]] according to [[grammatical tense|tense]]. One group of verbs (the ones ending in ''-er'' in present tense) has a special [[Imperative mood|imperative]] form (generally the verb [[word stem|stem]]), but with most verbs the imperative is identical to the [[infinitive]] form. [[perfect (grammar)|Perfect]] and [[present tense|present]] [[participle]]s as adjectival verbs are very common:<ref name="Haugen"/>

:Perfect participle: ''en stekt fisk''; "a fried fish" (steka = to fry)
:Present participle: ''en stinkande fisk''; "a stinking fish" (stinka = to stink)

In contrast to English and many other languages, Swedish does not use the perfect participle to form the present perfect and past perfect. Rather, the [[auxiliary verb]] ''har'' ("have"), ''hade'' ("had") is followed by a special form, called the [[supine]], used solely for this purpose (although often identical to the neuter form of the perfect participle):<ref name="Haugen"/>

:Perfect participle: ''målad'', "painted" – supine ''målat'', present perfect ''har målat''; "have painted"
:Perfect participle: ''stekt'', "fried" – supine ''stekt'', present perfect ''har stekt''; "have fried"
:Perfect participle: ''skriven'', "written" – supine ''skrivit'', present perfect ''har skrivit''; "have written"

When building the compound passive voice using the verb ''att bli'', the past participle is used:

:''den blir målad''; "it's being painted"
:''den blev målad''; "it was painted"

There exists also an inflected passive voice formed by adding ''-s'', replacing the final ''r'' in the present tense:

:''den målas''; "it's being painted"
:''den målades''; "it was painted"

In a subordinate [[clause]], the auxiliary ''har'' is optional and often omitted, particularly in written Swedish.

:''Jag ser att han (har) stekt fisken''; "I see that he has fried the fish"

[[Subjunctive mood]] is occasionally used for some verbs, but its use is in sharp decline and few speakers perceive the handful of commonly used verbs (as for instance: ''vore, månne'') as separate conjugations, most of them remaining only as set of [[Idiom|idiomatic expressions]].<ref name="Haugen"/>

Where other languages may use [[grammatical cases]], Swedish uses numerous [[preposition]]s, similar to those found in [[English language|English]]. As in modern [[German language|German]], prepositions formerly determined case in Swedish, but this feature can only be found in certain idiomatic expressions like ''till fots'' ("on foot", genitive).<ref>{{Harvnb|Hultman|2003|pp=182–183}}</ref>

As Swedish is a Germanic language, the [[syntax]] shows similarities to both English and German. Like English, Swedish has a [[subject–verb–object]] basic word order, but like German it utilizes [[V2 word order|verb-second word order]] in main clauses, for instance after [[adverbs]] and adverbial phrases, and [[dependent clauses]]. (Adverbial phrases denoting time are usually placed at the beginning of a main clause that is at the head of a sentence.) [[Prepositional phrase]]s are placed in a [[place–manner–time]] order, as in English (but not German). Adjectives precede the noun they modify.<ref>{{Harvnb|Bolander|2002}}</ref> Verb-second (inverted) word order is also used for questions.<ref name="Stensson 2013">{{cite web|last1=Stensson|first1=Leif|title=Swedish Grammar {{!}} Syntax|url=https://www.lysator.liu.se/language/Languages/Swedish/Grammar.html#syntax|publisher=Lysator Society, Linköping University|access-date=9 March 2018|date=August 2013|archive-date=19 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171219193417/http://www.lysator.liu.se/language/Languages/Swedish/Grammar.html#syntax|url-status=live}}</ref>