Mänskligt

Mänskligt is a Swedish adjective meaning "human" or "humane." It is derived from the noun människa, meaning a human being, with the suffix -ligt that forms a characteristic or quality. The related noun människlighet translates as "humanness" or "humanity." The term covers biological, social, and ethical aspects of being human and is used to describe traits, behaviors, and conditions associated with people.

In use, mänskligt commonly appears in phrases such as mänskligt beteende (human behavior), mänsklig natur (human nature), and mänsklighet (humanness). It also contributes to expressions about fallibility and compassion, for example in the well-known idiom Att fela är mänskligt, meaning "to err is human." The word functions across contexts from everyday speech to academic writing, ethics discussions, and cultural analysis.

Semantically, mänskligt sits within a family of terms related to humanity, including människa (human being), mänsklighet (humanness), and the English cognates humane and humanity. It is typically written in lowercase, except when used at the start of a sentence or as part of a title. The term is widely understood in Swedish-speaking contexts and appears across literature, journalism, and education when discussing human behavior, rights, and shared human experiences.