intresse

Intresse is a Swedish noun meaning interest in the sense of curiosity, concern, or stake in something. It can describe what a person finds meaningful, as in Jag har ett stort intresse för historia, or denote a financial or strategic stake in a matter, as in företagets intresse i projektet. The plural form is intressen.

In usage, intresse covers personal hobbies as well as professional or political concerns, and it commonly appears in phrases such as gemensamma intressen (shared interests) or olika intressen (different interests). A frequent compound is intressekonflikt, meaning a conflict of interest, used in ethics, governance, and law.

Etymology: The word traces to the sense of concern or advantage and has cognates in other Western European languages, such as French intérêt and English interest. The term is distinct from ränta, which in Swedish means the interest rate.

Usage tips: For general discussion of hobbies use intresse or intresset; for multiple topics use intressen. In formal Swedish, intressekonflikt is used for competing motives among parties. Examples: Jag har ett stort intresse för historia. Företaget har intresse i projektet. Gemensamma intressen kan stärka samarbetet.