Meaning of vara | Babel Free
/²vɑːra/Definitioner
- to last (go on for)
- to generate pus
- to be
- to occupy a place, to be (somewhere)
- to last, to keep (not spoil)
- to occur, to take place
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to exist uncommon
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Indicates that the subject and object are the same. copulative
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Indicates that the values on either side of an equation are the same. copulative
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Indicates that the subject plays the role of or belongs to the group represented by the predicate nominal. This is idiomatically applied more broadly compared to English, as the examples below show. Including an article or making the noun definite – like in English – is not ungrammatical and does not change the meaning of the examples – it is only unidiomatic (and often intuitively redundant to native speakers, for example for giving a count of one (en/ett) to a role, similar to how "became a president" sounds to English speakers). See also the usage notes for en, which include a rule of thumb. copulative
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Connects a noun to an adjective that describes it. copulative
- Forms a passive voice that indicates a state or a completed action. The examples below show comparisons against -s, which also forms the passive voice. The examples are kept basic for the sake of illustration and do not always represent the most idiomatic way to say things in either Swedish or English.
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Used to form the perfect aspect with certain intransitive verbs. archaic
- Used to indicate things like age, height, temperature, weather, ...
Exempel
“Var har du varit?”
Where have you been?
“Det var fest igår.”
There was a party yesterday.
“Att vara eller icke vara, det är frågan: Månn’ ädlare att lida och fördraga Ett bittert ödes styng och pilar eller Att ta till vapen mot ett haf af qval To be or not to be– that is the question:”
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles
“Att vara eller inte vara, det är frågan.”
To be or not to be, that is the question.
“Bruce Wayne är Batman.”
Bruce Wayne is Batman.
“ett plus ett är två.”
one plus one is two.
“Han blev president 2007.”
He became president in 2007 [same in Swedish as in English]
“Jag är islänning.”
I am Icelandic/an Icelander.
“Jag är iranier.”
I am (an) Iranian.
“Jag är tysk.”
I am (a) German.
“Jag är amerikan.”
I am (an) American.
“Jag är britt.”
I am British/a Brit.
“Hon är läkare.”
She is a doctor.
“Är hon bagare?”
Is she a baker?
“Han var soldat.”
He was a soldier.
“Han har varit löjtnant.”
He has been a lieutenant.
“Hon är lagkapten.”
She is a/the team captain.
“Han är frimurare.”
He is a Freemason.
“Han är filmfantast.”
He is a movie buff.
“Hon har blivit mamma.”
She has become a mother.
“Vem är far till barnen?”
Who is the father of the children?
“Vem är storasyster och vem är lillasyster?”
Who is the big sister and who is the little sister?
“att vara människa.”
to be a human.
“Hon är läkare, soldat och mamma på samma gång.”
She is a doctor, a soldier, and a mother at the same time.
“Hon är en skicklig läkare.”
She is a skilled doctor.
“Såsen är krämig.”
The sauce is creamy.
“1917 translation, the Bible, Deuteronomy (Femte Mosebok), 1:26”
Notwithstanding ye would not go up, but rebelled against the commandment of the Lord your God.
“Rummet städas.”
The room is cleaned.
“Rummet är städat.”
The room is clean.
“Rummet städas en gång i veckan.”
The room is cleaned once a week.
“Rummet är städat en gång i veckan.”
The room is clean once a week.
“Huset målades förra veckan, så det var målat när jag gick förbi det för en timme sen.”
The house was painted last week, so it was painted (had painted walls) when I walked past it an hour ago.
“Vi räddades av en räddningshelikopter.”
We were rescued by a rescue helicopter.
“Vi var räddade.”
We had been rescued.
“Pojken räddades av hunden.”
The boy was saved by the dog.
“Pojken var räddad av hunden.”
The boy had the property of having been saved by the dog.
“Pojken hade räddats av hunden.”
The boy had been saved by the dog.
“Bilen körs.”
The car is driven.
“Bilen är körd.”
The car is driven.
“Jag är uppstigen sedan en timme.”
I have been out of bed for an hour.
“Mötet varade flera timmar.”
The meeting lasted several hours.
“Mjölken varar längre i kylskåpet.”
The milk will last longer in the fridge.
“Såret började vara efter några timmar.”
The wound began to fill with pus after a few hours.
CEFR-nivå
This word is part of the CEFR A1 vocabulary — beginner level.