👨‍👩‍👧 People & Family

En eller ett?

en människa

en-word

Människa (meaning "person") is a common-gender noun in Swedish - it takes the article en. Definite singular: människan. Indefinite plural: människor. Definite plural: människorna.

Indefinite en människa
Definite människan
Plural människor
Plural def. människorna

Example sentences

1

en människa går på gatan.

indefinite singular

2

Han skyddar människan.

definite singular

3

Människor promenerar i parken.

plural

Why is människa an en-word?

Nouns with an unstressed -a ending are almost always en-words

This is one of 30 rules of thumb in Artikulera for predicting Swedish grammatical gender. The rule isn't absolute, but it holds for the vast majority of nouns that match the pattern.

Rare exceptions exist, but this rule correctly predicts the gender of most Swedish nouns that match the pattern.

Same rule - also en-words

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Frequently asked questions

Is människa en or ett in Swedish?
Människa (meaning "person") is an en-word in Swedish. Indefinite: en människa. Definite: människan. Plural: människor. Definite plural: människorna.
What is the definite form of människa?
The definite singular of människa is människan. En-words take the suffix ‑en in the definite singular. The definite plural is människorna.
What is the plural of människa in Swedish?
The indefinite plural of människa is människor. The definite plural is människorna.
Why is människa an en-word?
Nouns with an unstressed -a ending are almost always en-words. Människa follows this pattern.