Bestämdhetsändelser

Bestämdhetsändelser are suffixes in Swedish grammar used to indicate definiteness. Unlike in some other languages where definite articles precede nouns, Swedish often attaches a suffix directly to the noun itself to signify that it is being referred to in a specific, definite way. This is a key feature of Swedish morphology and distinguishes it from indefinite forms.

The form of the definite suffix depends on the noun's gender and declension class, as well as whether the noun is singular or plural. For common gender nouns in the singular, the most frequent suffix is "-en," as in "bil" (car) becoming "bilen" (the car). For neuter gender nouns in the singular, the suffix is typically "-et," for example, "hus" (house) becomes "huset" (the house). These suffixes often replace the final vowel of the indefinite form or are added after it.

In the plural, the definite form is also marked by suffixes. For example, the plural indefinite "bilar" (cars) becomes the definite plural "bilarna" (the cars). The definite suffixes in the plural are generally more consistent across genders. The presence of these bestämdhetsändelser is crucial for understanding the specific reference of a noun within a Swedish sentence, functioning similarly to definite articles like "the" in English.