predikativet

Predikativet is a term used in Swedish grammar to describe the part of the predicate that follows a copular verb and provides information about the subject. It expresses property, identity, or classification rather than modifying a noun within a noun phrase. Typical copular verbs in Swedish include vara (to be), bliva (to become), heta (to be called), and kallas (called).

Predikativet can take different forms. It may be a noun phrase, as in han är läkare (he is a doctor); an adjective phrase, as in hon blev glad (she became happy); or a pronoun/proper noun, as in han heter Erik (his name is Erik). The key idea is that the predicative element completes the meaning of the copular verb by saying something about the subject as a whole, not by describing a specific noun within a larger noun phrase.

This contrasts with attribut som fungerar som delar av en nominalfras, such as en röd bil, where the descriptive word modifies the noun within the noun phrase. In predicative use, the word after the copular verb is part of the predicate and pertains to the subject’s state or identity rather than the structure of a noun phrase.

Predikativet often agrees with the subject in number and, when an adjective is used, takes the appropriate inflection (for example, glad vs. glada). It is a central concept in explaining how Swedish sentences express states, roles, or classifications through linking verbs, separating the information about the subject from the surrounding noun phrases.