Uppslukade

Uppslukade is a Swedish adjective form used to describe people or things that are deeply absorbed or engrossed in something. It derives from the verb uppsluka, meaning to swallow up or engulf, with the prefix upp- and the root sluka. The base participle is uppslukad, and uppslukade is the plural form or the plural past participle used in predicative or attributive position with plural subjects.

In use, uppslukade typically describes intense focus or immersion, often in a book, a film, a task, or an activity. Examples include a group of readers being uppslukade by a novel, or viewers who are uppslukade by a series. The construction can also appear with the preposition av to indicate what is causing the absorption, as in uppslukade av arbetet or uppslukade av berättelsen. The sense emphasizes immersion to the extent that surroundings or time may be forgotten.

The term is common in everyday Swedish as well as in literary criticism and journalism. It carries a nuance of deep engagement rather than casual interest, and it can be either neutral or slightly evaluative depending on context. Synonyms include fängslad or försjunken, though uppslukade tends to highlight total absorption.

Notes on form: uppslukade functions as the plural form of uppslukad when describing multiple subjects, and can also appear as a past participle in compound tenses with plural subjects (e.g., de var uppslukade). For singular references, uppslukad is used (hon var uppslukad).