Chapter 8, lesson 67

The Children and the Books

Use the definite plural for the ones you both know about, as in bilarna, husen and äpplena, learn the four forms of a noun together, and the forms that change more, such as männen.

What you will learn

You can say the cars, the houses and the apples with the definite plural, as in bilarna, husen and äpplena. You also learn the four forms of a noun together.

Four forms of a noun

AThePluralThe pluralEnglish
en bilbilenbilarbilarnacar
en flaskaflaskanflaskorflaskornabottle
en bananbananenbananerbananernabanana
ett äppleäppletäpplenäpplenaapple
ett hushusethushusenhouse
en lärarelärarenlärarelärarnateacher

The definite plural is built from the plural you already know.

The plural ends inAddExample
-ar, -or or -er-nabilar, bilarna
-n-aäpplen, äpplena
no ending, an ett-word-enhus, husen
no ending, an en-word with -aredrop the e, add -nalärare, lärarna

Forms that change more

PluralThe pluralEnglish
mänmännenthe men
rumrummenthe rooms
fönsterfönstrenthe windows
nummernumrenthe numbers
kilokilonathe kilos
kilometerkilometrarnathe kilometers
böckerböckernathe books
bröderbrödernathe brothers

Män becomes männen. Rum doubles the m, so rummen and sovrummen. Fönster and nummer lose an e. Kilo takes -na, and kilometer becomes kilometrarna. Böckerna, bröderna and döttrarna follow the rule, but their plural has already changed its vowel. The vocabulary page lists the definite plural of every noun you know.

When to use it

Use the definite plural for things that you and the listener both know about, just as you use bilen for one car. After a number, use the plural without the ending.

SwedishEnglish
Barnen är i skolan.The children are at school.
Var är böckerna?Where are the books?
Kenji tittar på bilderna.Kenji is looking at the pictures.
Äpplena kostar trettio kronor.The apples cost 30 kronor.
Alla gästerna kom klockan sex.All the guests came at six.
Ines har två hundar. Hundarna är små.Ines has two dogs. The dogs are small.

Alla gästerna means all the guests, the ones you are talking about.

Common mistakes

Not like thisLike thisWhy
bilernabilarnaKeep the plural bilar and add -na.
husenahusenHus has no plural ending, so it takes -en.
två hundarnatvå hundarAfter a number, use the plural without the definite ending.

Check yourself

A few questions from the Learning Path on this lesson. Answer, then check, or show the answer with its explanation.

  1. Vilken mening är rätt efter "Jag köpte tre böcker"?
  2. Skriv bestämd plural av lärare.

    Alla är här.

  3. Hugo pekar på Kenjis tre nya böcker och frågar var Kenji köpte dem. Vilken form passar i luckan?

    Kenji, var köpte du ___?

  4. Skriv bestämd plural av fönster.

    är stora.

  5. Välj den engelska betydelsen av den svenska meningen eller frasen.

    Äpplena kostar trettio kronor.

  6. Marta letar efter de flaskor som hon köpte i går. Ändra det givna ordet till den form som betyder the bottles.

    Change the form of flaskor

    Var är ? Jag hittar dem inte.

How this lesson connects

Learning Path

Practice and review

Practice this lesson, check your answers and review mistakes in a separate round. Track your results as you work through the course.

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