Medföra

Medföra is a Swedish verb meaning to bring along or carry with, and by extension to entail or result in. It is a transitive verb and typically takes a direct object, which can be a concrete thing or an abstract consequence. The primary sense is physical accompaniment, as in bringing documents or items with you; the secondary sense is that something “brings about” changes, costs, or risks.

Etymology and forms: medföra is built from med- meaning “with” and föra meaning “to carry/bring.” The conjugation includes medför in the present tense, medförde in the past tense, and medfört as the supine/perfect participle. The past participle is commonly used in perfect tenses, as in har medfört. The present participle or adjective form is medförande, used to describe something that entails or brings about a consequence (ett medförande problem). The infinitive is medföra.

Usage: In everyday language, medföra is often used in its physical sense with items or people, or in a neutral, formal sense to indicate consequences. In informal speech, phrases like ta med sig or föra med sig are more common for physical accompaniment, while medföra is preferred in official, legal, or analytical writing. It frequently collocates with nouns such as kostnader, risker, konsekvenser, eller förändringar.

Examples:

- Lagen medför nya krav på företagen. (The law entails new requirements for companies.)

- Hon medförde sina dokument till mötet. (She brought her documents to the meeting.)

- Investeringen medför flera risker och kostnader. (The investment entails several risks and costs.)

Related terms include ta med sig (to bring along) and bära med sig (to carry with oneself), which are more common in informal speech.