föreställningar

Föreställningar is a Swedish noun in plural form that most commonly refers to performances or presentations intended for an audience. In theatre, dance, music, and cinema, a single occurrence is a föreställning, while several events are referred to as föreställningar. The term appears in program guides, posters, and schedules, as in Kvällens föreställning or festivalen erbjuder tre föreställningar.

Besides its sense as an audience-facing performance, föreställningar can also mean mental constructs: notions, beliefs, or concepts about a subject. For example, genom tiderna har föreställningar om könsroller förändrats. In formal writing, these senses are often expressed with uppfattningar, åsikter, eller övertygelser to avoid ambiguity.

Etymology and nuance: The word stems from the verb föreställa, meaning to present, depict, or imagine. The noun preserves both senses: a presentation to an audience and an imagined or conceived idea. The context usually clarifies which meaning is intended.

Föreställningar is therefore a versatile term in Swedish, used both for live performances and for the realm of ideas, with the intended meaning guided by surrounding words and the communicative context.