skvallra

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse skvaldra (“to babble, chatter”), from or akin to Old Norse skvala (“to bawl, squeal”), from Proto-Germanic *skwel- (“to chatter, babble, scream”). Cognate with English squeal.

Verb

skvallra (present skvallrar, preterite skvallrade, supine skvallrat, imperative skvallra)

1. to tell on

   Nisse skvallrade när Olle pallade

   Nisse told on Olle when he stole fruit

2. to gossip

Usage notes

Used with på when used transitively.

Conjugation

Conjugation of skvallra (weak)

	Active		Passive
Infinitive	skvallra		skvallras
Supine	skvallrat		skvallrats
Imperative	skvallra		—
Imper. plural1	skvallren		—
	Present	Past	Present	Past
Indicative	skvallrar	skvallrade	skvallras	skvallrades
Ind. plural1	skvallra	skvallrade	skvallras	skvallrades
Subjunctive2	skvallre	skvallrade	skvallres	skvallrades
	Participles
Present participle	skvallrande
Past participle	—
1 Archaic. 2 Dated. See the appendix on Swedish verbs.

Related terms

• skvaller (“gossip”)

See also

• skvallerbytta (“tattletale”)
• tjalla (“inform on, snitch”)
• gola (“snitch, rat out”)

References

• skvallra in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• skvallra in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• skvallra in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)