svart
/¹svart/
The Swedish word for black is svart.
svart is used as an adjective to describe something that absorbs all light. It can also function as a noun meaning the colour black. For very intense shades of black, you can use the expressions Pitch-svart or Nattsvart to mean pitch black or Fullständigt svart to mean completely black.
Meaning: absorbing all light (adj)
Which one should you use?
The form svart is used for singular nouns of the common gender, while svarta is used when describing plural nouns or nouns in their definite form. Additionally, svarta is the specific term used to refer to the black ball in games like billiards, snooker or pool.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
As an adjective, svart is the form used for common gender (en-words) in the indefinite singular. The form changes to svarta when the adjective describes a noun that is either plural or in the definite form.
How do you pronounce it?
/¹svart/
Did you know?
- In Swedish, svart is used in the term svart arbete to describe 'black market' labor or working under the table to avoid taxes.
- In Swedish, the phrase att se svart can be used to describe a pessimistic outlook or feeling that things will end badly.
- The Swedish word svart shares a common ancestor with the English word 'swart', which is an archaic term for dark-skinned or dark-complexioned.
Examples in context
- Är din bil svart?Is your car black?This sentence asks if a car is svart.Tatoeba #11061773 by SilasNordgren, translation #2055348 by Dejo
- Min häst är svart.My horse is black.This sentence describes a horse that is svart.Tatoeba #4446085 by richke, translation #2703249 by catcher
- Min katt är svart.My cat is black.This sentence describes a cat that is svart.Tatoeba #9024148 by morbrorper, translation #7844818 by Ricardo14
- Den här jackan är svartThis jacket is black
- Hennes klänning är fullständigt svartHer dress is completely black
- Hennes ögon hade en djup svärtaHer eyes had a deep blackness
- Skogen var nattsvartThe forest was pitch black
- 50 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Oscar and Emma are looking at a new sofa in a store.
- OscarÄr den där soffan svart?Is that sofa black?
- EmmaJa, den är helt svart.Yes, it is completely black.
- OscarJag föredrar den svarta modellen.I prefer the black model.
- EmmaDen passar perfekt i ditt vardagsrum.It fits perfectly in your living room.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “black” translations and entries svart, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries svart, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
