sägas

Sägas is the present passive form of the Swedish verb säga, meaning to say. It is used to express something that is said or believed without specifying who says it. The construction is common in impersonal clauses and in reported speech.

A typical usage is with the dummy subject det, forming phrases like det sägs att something happens. For example, "Det sägs att hon kommer senare" means "It is said that she will come later." The form can also appear in longer statements where the agent is understood or not stated at all.

Past tense usage occurs with the passive past form sades, as in "Det sades att konferensen började tidigare," meaning "It was said that the conference began earlier." The distinction between sägas (present) and sades (past) helps situate when the hearsay was claimed.

Grammatical notes: sägas is the passive of säga, produced with the -s suffix to form the passive voice. In Swedish, the passive is frequently used to present information as something commonly believed or reported, rather than as a direct assertion by a named source. The structure is versatile for reporting rumors, general statements, or widely circulated beliefs.

Related terms include säga (to say), sagd (said, past participle), and other passive forms formed with -s. While sägas is common in everyday language, more formal or written contexts may prefer constructions like "Det ryktas" or explicit quotes to convey hearsay.