höras

Höras is a Swedish verb that denotes the passive form of the verb höra, meaning to hear. In usage, höras conveys that something is heard, audible, or perceptible, rather than actively hearing it being performed by a subject. It is most commonly found in impersonal or descriptive constructions where the agent is unknown or irrelevant, such as descriptions of sounds, noises, or reports.

In contemporary Swedish, höras appears primarily in formal, literary, or journalistic writing. It often serves to indicate that sounds, voices, or statements are perceivable by listeners in the stated context. Common examples describe ambient sound or circulating information without naming the source. For instance, a sentence might note that “mycket sorl hörs i gatan” (a lot of bustle is heard on the street) to focus on the experience of the sound rather than on who is hearing it. The form can also appear in past contexts as part of passive narration, where the event of hearing is reported rather than directly described.

Etymologically, höras derives from the verb höra, which belongs to the Germanic family of languages and is related to verbs in related Scandinavian languages that mean to hear or to perceive by listening.

See also: höra, hörsel, hearing.