für

För is a Swedish preposition meaning for, used in a variety of roles in grammar and everyday speech. It signals purpose or aim (often with the infinitive form in conjunctions like för att), as well as benefit or recipient, duration, exchange, and degree. Because Swedish has no cases, för governs the following noun phrase without inflection, while the surrounding sentence provides the meaning.

Common uses include:

- Purpose or aim: för att + infinitive expresses why something is done. Example: Jag arbetar för att spara pengar (I work in order to save money).

- Benefit or recipient: Det här är för dig (This is for you) indicates who benefits.

- Duration: Vi stannade där för två dagar (We stayed there for two days).

- Price or exchange: Köpte den för 100 kronor (Bought it for 100 crowns).

- Degree or excess: Det är för varmt (It’s too warm); för mycket (too much).

- Cause or motive in certain constructions: För det regnade stannade vi hemma is often reformulated with för att, but för can still appear in phrases indicating reason.

Pronunciation and forms:

- För is pronounced roughly [fœːr] or [føːr] in standard Swedish, with the ö vowel. It generally does not change form across contexts.

Relations and contrasts:

- För contrasts with till, which often marks direction, destination, or recipient in other senses. Many contexts accepted as “for” in English require careful attention to whether för denotes purpose, benefit, or duration.

- The construction för att + infinitive is a common periphrasis for expressing purpose, replacing English “in order to.”

Etymology:

- För derives from Old Norse and related North Germanic forms; it is cognate with Danish for and Norwegian for, and related to the English for. The Proto-Germanic roots are reconstructed and mirrored across Germanic languages.