Swedish

edit

Etymology

edit

From Old Swedish alvarliker, from Old Norse alvarligr. By surface analysis, allvar (seriousness) +‎ -lig.

Pronunciation

edit
  • IPA(key): /ˈalˌvɑːrlɪ(ɡ)/, [ˈalˌvɑːɭɪ(ɡ)]
  • Audio:(file)

Adjective

edit

allvarlig

  1. serious (not joking, solemn)
    en man med en allvarlig min
    a man with a serious look on his face
    Men allvarligt talat, vad hade du förväntat dig?
    Seriously though [but seriously speaking], what did you expect?
    – Jag vann just en miljon på lotto! – Allvarligt?
    – I just won a million on the lottery! – Seriously?
  2. serious, severe, grave ((potentially causing something) very bad)
    en mycket allvarlig situation
    a very serious situation
    allvarlig sjukdom
    severe disease
    en allvarlig sjukdom
    a serious disease
    en allvarlig olycka
    a serious / major accident

Usage notes

edit

Compare seriös.

Declension

edit
Inflection of allvarlig
Indefinite Positive Comparative Superlative2
Common singular allvarlig allvarligare allvarligast
Neuter singular allvarligt allvarligare allvarligast
Plural allvarliga allvarligare allvarligast
Masculine plural3 allvarlige allvarligare allvarligast
Definite Positive Comparative Superlative
Masculine singular1 allvarlige allvarligare allvarligaste
All allvarliga allvarligare allvarligaste
1) Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine.
2) The indefinite superlative forms are only used in the predicative.
3) Dated or archaic

Derived terms

edit

See also

edit

References

edit