Swedish dialectal words - readers' words from across Sweden

Writer: Helena Bergström

Updated: October 2026 | What do bängla, göralöser and rullebör mean? Here we have collected dialectal words and expressions that our readers have contributed, from Norrbotten to Skåne. We also make a detour to Swedish in Finland. There will be both glossaries, funny misunderstandings and dialects to listen to!

Swedish dialectal words - from readers

When we asked our readers for dialect words and expressions, we received a fantastic response. Contributions came via the blog, Facebook, email and Messenger. Some even sent audio recordings. It is thanks to all these contributions that this collection exists!

The list includes dialect words, regional expressions, slang and examples of pronunciation. The headings show which areas readers have linked their contributions to. This does not mean that the words are only used there: the same word can occur in several places, and both pronunciation and meaning can differ between nearby locations.

Some expressions are still widely used, while others live mainly in the memories of parents and grandparents. The spelling mainly follows the contributions of readers, since there is not always an obvious way to write a dialectal pronunciation. A reader from Leksand summed it up nicely:

Måcköl of the oil we have is a goal. Båd utyvör o ovatä i landä. (Many of the words are found in other dialects as well, both below and above in the country.) /Anonymous

Listen to Swedish dialects

Some words almost have to be heard to be understood. That's why we recorded a film with some of the words and expressions we know ourselves, in Stockholm and Skåne.

We also received audio recordings from the couple behind the blog Magnolia Magis. Here you can listen to examples of Västgötland, Värmland and dialects from Kumla and Örebro. Many thanks for the contributions! The recording has no moving image, so it is the sound you should listen to.

Dialectal words from Norrland

Here we have collected contributions that readers have linked to Norrland without a more specific place or region. Norrland is of course home to many different dialects. More words can be found under the region headings below.

• Bängla - Fussing, fussing
• Doppa - Coffee bread
• Eljest - Different, deviant
• Defence - The day before yesterday
• Harta - halves
• Hood - How awful!
• Obra - Not good
• Coffee printing - Not drinking coffee
• Olympic Games - Unskilled, clumsy
• Originating from - Not having run yet
• Paltkoma - Significant satiety/drowsiness
• Pjöller - Prat
• Pumla - Christmas bauble
• Good practice - Cloudberry
• Ids int - Can't be bothered

I find that I very often use the letter O in front of many words. Unmade, unspoken, unseen, etc. It's very convenient. And we shorten words (listen to Ingemar Stenmark). Also very convenient. We celebrate Stugsista on the coast of Västerbotten and the coast of Ostrobothnia on the last weekend in August... If you come a little further south in Norrland, it's called Lyskväll. What is it called in Götaland? /Birgitta

Thanks to: BP, Niklas A, Birgitta, British only

Norrbotten

• Otjorvigt - Single

Thanks to: Siv E

Västerbotten

• Disappeared - Done, finished with the task
• Home-brewed best place on jola - Home, the best place on earth
• Lagran - Kräsen, doesn't eat just anything
• Healing - leakage
• Nalta - Little (harta toe harta and harta toe dä = half of half and half of that)
• Nesdjäla - Lunchbox (pronounced with a thick L)
• Undone - Not done
• Oi - Unbuttoned (the button is oi)
• Sno - Turning
• Cabin list - Celebrating the last weekend of August
• Eating tobacco - Backwards or sideways

Thanks to: Åsa/Nalta Norrland, Birgitta, Gert N, Stig A, Jarl M

Jämtland

• Goat - Be forced to
• Huh/he - Standing, laying, placing
• Klavasutta - Mumps
• Omansam - Unpleasant etc. (difficult to translate)
• Pear - Potatoes
• The shadow sport - programme

I remember one time when my grandmother was down in Stockholm on a visit and we went shopping. She asked the staff where they had the "pear" (potato). They looked at her a bit strangely for a few seconds and exclaimed "Ah, you mean the pears! Here they are! /Therese

Thanks to: Therese, Ann-Sofie A

Ångermanland

• Ampen - Anxious
• Read - Doing something that takes a long time
• Disappeared - Avoided, finished
• Boa - The affair
• Brydges - Uncertain
• Beech - Grumpy
• Banned - Difficult
• Archery - Buckla
• Bay door - Gylf
• Darmä river - Fainting
• Hanging - retard
• milling machine - male cat
• growling - Coffee grounds
• Hard on hard - A quarter
• Hoven droven  - No scheme, gaps in noise
• To be remembered - Russian
• Härmelite - Regrettable
• Hä åvä - Setting aside
• Fine up in the yga - Beautiful
• Jeck bet - Failed
• jet - forced, must
• cheeks - Retas
• Karusha - rubber band
• Klater - hassle
• Clapboard snaps - A "thumb in the middle of the hand" in woodworking
• Kangero - spindle
• Way up in the sky - Surprised
• Live if - Väsnas
• Marnomt - Always something
• Needle - Poor
• Untouchable - Unpleasant
• Outerwear - Weary
• Oils - Carelessness
• Polemasa - Work slowly
• On the sly - Under the influence of alcohol
• Stamp - Mashed potatoes
• instalment - Rubbish
• Raw road - Keep up with
• Sekasam - Slow
• Self-monitoring standards - Loose teeth
• Slobberworm - Waste bucket
• Suta meter - Scribblers
• There - Take it easy, wait
• Dry toe - Wipe off
• The worst - Gassy stomach
• Eating tobacco - Backwards

Thanks to: Lena - Good for the soul, Steve, Ewa H

Medelpad

• Goodbye - hello
• Hugaligen - How awful

Thanks to: Maggan and Ingemar

Hälsingland

• Tockeranan/Reranan - Those
• Now! - Now you will see!
• But now! - But now I believe!

Thanks to: Åsa

We also received contributions from Ostrobothnia in Finland. Here you can find both local expressions and words that are used more generally in Finnish Swedish.

It is especially good to know the difference between semla and Easter bun. A semla is a small French roll or fralla in Finnish Swedish, while the pastry that we call semla in Sweden is called fastlagsbulle.

• A dual code - One of those you know
• farm trousers - Jeans (old-fashioned word)
• Restraint bubble - Semla
• Graveyard - Cemetery
• High bed - Bunk bed
• Ids int - Can't be bothered
• Morning meal - breakfast
• Nog - Undoubtedly, for sure
• Crude - Confused, disorganised
• Semla - Fralla
• Vappen - Walpurgis Night
• Ämbar - bucket

At least previous generations in Ostrobothnia talk/talked about "farmabyxor" (jeans). Something I would never think of saying, but my mum asked for just such trousers in a shop in Stockholm when I was quite small, and I thought it was so embarrassing that she couldn't speak understandable Swedish, haha /Maria's memoirs

Thanks to: Maria's memoirs

Dialectal words from Dalarna

The contributions from Dalarna show that the same word can have different explanations even within a region. Tare For example, there are articles from both Leksand and Borlänge, with slightly different descriptions from the readers.

Leksand

• Fäjsä - The barn
• Jella -Elda
• Jönug - A little dry
• Karug - Very manly
• Cupola - spindle
• cure - Kor
• Coolers - Children
• Kölla - Girl
• Sexiness - Strange
• Tare - Looking for
• Tryja - Sweater
• Ökkö - What

Thanks to: BF

Borlänge

• Frogs - Frusen
• lunch box - Lunch box
• Möla - Ingesting food (gulping)
• Sulla - Spilla
• Sullgucku - Person playing
• Tare - "Look after their own needs first" (difficult to translate)

Thanks to: Across the board

Gästrikland: Gävle

• Turned out - Tired of waiting for someone

Thanks to: Across the board

Dialectal words from Värmland

• Barefoot - Barefoot
• Dret to - Shit
• A toe tag is - One of those you know
• Feschlig - Feg
• Glint - Stop
• Gloating - Stirring
• The hay is?/The hay is noticeable? - How are you? How do you feel?
• I'm ready to talk to you! - I need to talk to you
• Joapelstamp - Mashed potatoes
• Recently - Only (will always pick up, i.e. will only pick up)
• Cup - An idiot
• Kääri - Male
• Trowel for glue scissors - Cerat to the mouth
• Pocka = Is forced to do something
• Interest rates - Diarrhoea
• Sinni - Arg

Thanks to: Elisabeth, Kenneth R, Inga-Maj W, China M

Degerfors

• trough arches - Pedal bike

Thanks to: Gunnar J

Västmanland

• At the bottom! - Lord God! (approximately)

Thanks to: China M

Stockholm words and slang

Here you will find mainly Stockholm slang words, many of which are associated with older generations. Some words are also used far outside Stockholm. Macka For example, is now a common everyday word throughout the country.

• Barre - Apartment
• Leaf - Go
• Bomma - Borrowing
• Borre - Sup
• Arc - Lying
• Bängen - Policy
• Bängen trawls - Police in car
• Arrow (they are now fleeing) - Unknown ailment that goes away on its own (Roslagen)
• Half bend - Explorer (alcohol)
• Haru chips? - Do you have money?
• Jonne - Bicycle
• Macka - Sandwiches
• Nian - The face
• cardboard - Money
• Snake with sheath - Sausage with bread
• rods - Father
• Sula - Caste
• Take the bus - You're talking rubbish
• Tricks - Tramway
• Tubes - Underground railway
• Where - Stayed

Thanks to: Peter, Emma Sol as Sol, Eva M.

foolishness

• Trellis - Boring (to be pronounced with a capital L)

Thanks to: Marita R

In Närke, it's trääälit - with a thick l. (You have to roll your tongue in.) Närkiska really has to be heard to come into its own. /Marita R

Östergötland

• Gremlins and remedies - Things and things

Thanks to: Ingela T

Dialectal words from Västergötland

Stockholm words and slang

Here we first collect contributions linked to Västergötland without a more specific location. Then come words from Skaraborg, Hjo, Ulricehamn and Borås.

• Annevessare - Different
• Daramor and Darafar - Mother and father in the neighbouring house
• Daras - Daramor and darafar in one word (mother and father in the neighbouring house)
• Göralöser - Idle
• necks - halves
• Heel-to-heel - Hot dog with half mash, half fries (Tidaholm speciality)
• Ids not - Can't be bothered
• I value me - Occasionally (once in a while)
• Teress - Ready (Ready?)
• Kôvna - Fainting due to heat, heat stroke
• tapping - quirks
• oesophageal drip - Roof drip

A personal favourite expression that we still use in the family every once in a while is my grandfather's "do-nothing": if you have nothing to do, you are do-nothing, idle. It was his greatest fear, and has probably been passed on to me. /Eva/Living as Eva

Thanks to: Eva/Leva as Eva, Maria/Magnolia Magis, Birgitta S, Marianne G, Christina L.

Skaraborg

• Olle - Sweater
• Ryssta - Shaking a tablecloth/carpet

Thanks to: Maria/Magnolia Magis

Hjo

• Bôrna - Drinking, drinking
• Bå´thôve - Large head
• Da´li - Good
• Flô - Move
• Foot - Food
• Fârsk - Ridiculous, mischievous, stupid
• Getta sej - Disappear
• Glihy´ - Teasing, stingy, mean
• Coffin - Dumb
• Kö´rta vejs - Long road
• Le´tten - Large
• mud - Much; little
• Njoring - Curious
• New - Meaningless, bad, teasing
• O´less - Hard, tough
• O´snögg - Ugly
• Sar´ja - Tjata
• Se´rva sej - Buckle up
• Skiing - Funny, good, tasty, stylish
• Sky - Boring

Thanks to: Carin A

Ulricehamn

• Bôgda - The village
• Do not kneel - No nudging
• Seagull - A lot of
• Ôfsadrop - Roof drip
• potheads - Potatoes
• Put deck - Take a seat
• Twitter - Boring
• Don't step there because then you'll look - Do not press there or you will sink

Thanks to: Marita

Gothenburg words and expressions

• Bala - Drinking
• Bamba - School meals
• Roast - Making noise
• Flared - Nice
• Are you good or not? - Are you crazy? Well done!
• External - Nonsense
• Making - Mula someone with snow (pronounced with a long island)
• Semi-special - Grilled with bread and mash
• Knô - Crowding
• Knôka - Stringing things together
• The - Well
• Fuse - Frequent spring fires in nature
• Popper - Gym shoes as they were worn in the past
• roll - Fralla
• Swallow - Stairwell
• swelling layer - Stairwell neighbour
• Tetig - Weird, strange
• Open - Want everything
• The duck - As well as

First of all, NEVER say Jötlaborg! No native Gothenburgers say that. It's usually Stockholmers who want to pretend! /Veiken

Thanks to: Veiken, Christina L, Eva JE, British only

Borås

• Enjoyable - Boring
• Southern - Disgusting

Thanks to: Ingrid B

Dialectal words from Småland

Here are both words and pronunciation examples. Bicycles and the key shows, for example, how a word can sound when a vowel disappears.

• Evil - dirt
• Bicycles - The bicycle
• Danish = Bort (ta dän = remove)
• The first toss in mass - First Thursday in March (celebrated with cake)
• Hia you - Calm down
• Hie - Messy place
• How is the oil? - How is it made, how is it constructed?
• Krösamos - Lingonberry jam
• Lu - Boy
• Nycles - The key
• Råka - Find the way
• roses - Frusen
• Feta - Knitting (in the finger)
• Customs sample - Nonsense
• Sulle - Would (like "What would you do there" which means "What would you do there")
• Tvi vale - Something scary, disgusting
• Ushale - Something scary, disgusting
• Wakakaya - Capstan
• Turn to - Mess up
• Oh dear children in the choir! - Exclamation of astonishment/pity

In southern Småland (Växjö-Älmhult), where my grandfather comes from, it is almost a bit English in that they say "so it is" "so she does", "so I will" etc. at the end of sentences to confirm them. They also call the crow a "wagtail" because it cries when it rains and it's black. /Only British

Thanks to: Ann-Louise, Matts T, Only British

Halland

• Orca hole - Extra kilo

Thanks to: Gunilla U

Blekinge: Karlskrona

• Beech - jar
• Gaur - Walking
• Cabin - Sausage
• Nytite - Embarrassing
• potheads - Potatoes
• Feta - Knitting (in the finger)
• Speka - Tear up
• Spirel - Grey sparrow

Thanks to: Cecilia L, Eva S, Monika L

Scanian words and expressions

• Abedånk - Tired/sleepy after eating
• Eel hat - Eel head
• Blannevann - Grog wood
• pile - High (for example, a pile of newspapers)
• Bull - Small French/French rolls
• Bubble within a bubble - Chocolate ball in a small French roll

The first time we went into an absolutely wonderful café, Anna's in Ljunghusen, we were like two question marks: "What do you want on your bun?" it said. Below that were listed cheese, ham, liver paste, meatballs. Really? When we eat buns we want cinnamon or vanilla buns? Then we learnt that "bulle" meant roll, bread etc. /Maria/Magnolia Magis

• Where her - Over there
• Fubbick - Unpleasant, stupid person
• Glatta - Halka
• Hialös - Restless, impatient
• Hossor - Socks
• Kamma daj - Pull yourself together
• Kubba - Jumping
• Ledegille - A search so extensive that it becomes 'a party'.
• Salary - Said (sourly) when wasting time on the wrong thing
• Maize fire - Majbrasa
• The key - The key
• Pjoddar - Birds
• Flat (walk on flat or on just the tiles) - Go barefoot
• Rolling burden - Wheelbarrow
• Rälig - Disgusting
• Pushing - skipping school
• instep - bucket
• Speaking out - Say to
• Triangles - triangles
• Tösabid - Girl

My mother had a habit of misplacing her keys and purse, and from time to time she would get nervously excited about not finding them when she needed them. She used an expression to describe how she would turn the house upside down to find the stuff: "ledegille" - a search that became so extensive that it was like a party. "I didn't find my purse, aaau... sicked ledegille I had!" - I did not find my purse, help what I had to look for it! /Åsa

Thanks to: Nils-Åke H, Solveig H, China M, Johan, British only, Åsa, Monica A, Helena

A dialect journey with Robert Gustafsson

To conclude, there is a clip where Robert Gustafsson ”travels around” with a map and imitates different dialects. It is of course humorous, but a fun way to round off our own journey among the readers’ words and expressions!

What dialectal words do you use?

Do you recognize the words on the list? Do you use any of them with a different meaning, or are you missing an expression from your hometown?

Please tell us in a comment! Preferably write where the word is used, what it means and a sentence in which it is included. It is often the examples and stories that make you understand how a word is actually used.

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