jämna

Jämna is a Swedish verb meaning to make something even or smooth, or to level out differences. It can refer to physical smoothing of surfaces, flattening terrain, or to reducing disparities between things in a figurative sense, such as income, opportunities, or scores. The form with the separable particle ut—jämna ut—means to even out or balance. In usage, jämna ut is common in politics, economics, and everyday language.

Conjugation and forms follow standard patterns for Swedish -a verbs. The infinitive is jämna, with present tense jämnar, past tense jämnade, and supine jämnat. The separable phrasal verb jämna ut is used when the emphasis is on the result of smoothing or balancing.

Examples include: “The policy aims to jämna ut income differences” (to equalize income differences) and “The road crew will jämna ut the gravel to create a smooth surface” (they will smooth the surface). In mathematical or statistical contexts, jämna can be used in expressions describing making results more even or comparable.

Etymology and related terms: jämna is built from the adjective jämn, meaning even or identical, which in turn stems from older Germanic roots. Related words include jämn (even) and jämnhet (evenness). The verb also relates to the broader concept of leveling or balancing in various domains.

See also: jämn; jämnhet; level; balance.