kasta

Kasta is a Swedish verb meaning to throw or toss. It is used for both literal throwing of objects and certain figurative uses, such as kasta en blick (to throw a glance). The infinitive is kasta; present tense is kastar; past tense is kastade; supine is kastat. In compound tenses, the past participle kastat is used with auxiliary har/hålla, as in har kastat.

Etymology and cognates: kasta stems from Old Norse kasta and has cognates in other North Germanic languages, such as Danish and Norwegian kasta. The verb is related to the English word cast, reflecting shared Germanic roots.

Usage and grammar: kasta is a regular-to-semi-regular Swedish verb in standard usage, with the basic forms noted above. It governs a direct object, as in Jag kastar bollen (I throw the ball). It also forms common phrasal verbs, including kasta bort (to throw away), kasta ner (to throw down), and kasta sig (to throw oneself, or to hurl oneself at something). The noun kast, meaning a throw or a cast, is used in various contexts, for example ett kast.

Form and style notes: In most contexts, kasta is the standard verb for throwing, while its related verbs and phrases expand its meaning to throwing away, throwing in, or acting energetically. As with many Swedish verbs, meaning can shift with particle verbs to emphasize direction, disposal, or emphasis.

See also: Norwegian/Danish kasta; English cast. For more on related expressions, see kast and the noun kast.