förra

Förra is a Swedish adjective meaning “previous” or “the last.” It is used to indicate the most recent item or period in a sequence and typically precedes a noun such as a time expression or a definite noun in a paired context. Common phrases include förra veckan (last week), förra året (last year), förra månaden (last month), and förra gången (the last time). It can also function in a clause to refer to a prior item in a comparison, as in Den förra bilen var röd, den här är blå (The previous car was red; this one is blue).

In usage, förra often appears before time-related nouns, where it conveys immediacy, and it can also appear as a determiner in phrases like den förra, referring to the former one in a pair or series. The form agrees with the gender and definiteness of the noun it modifies, as with other Swedish adjectives.

Etymology and related forms: förra derives from Old Swedish and is cognate with related forms in Norwegian and Danish (forrige). It is part of a family of words used to mark temporal or sequential relationships.

Related terms and nuances: synonyms such as tidigare or senaste can, in some contexts, convey similar meanings but with different nuances. While förra emphasizes the immediate past, tidigare stresses prior in a broader sense, and senaste often corresponds to the most recent in a broader range. In some cases, especially in formal writing, uttrycket förrförra (the year before last) can appear, though it is less common and more dialectal or literary.