bestämma
Swedish
[edit]Etymology
[edit]be- + stämma, like German bestimmen
Pronunciation
[edit]Audio: (file)
Verb
[edit]bestämma (present bestämmer, preterite bestämde, supine bestämt, imperative bestäm)
- to decide (from a position of getting to decide things)
- to decide (something) from a position of authority
- Jag bestämmer att kebabsåsen måste göras krämigare
- I'm deciding (as a person who gets to decide things) that the kebab sauce must be made creamier
- to decide (something) from a position of getting to decide things more generally
- Kunderna får själva bestämma vilken sås de vill ha
- Customers get to decide themselves which sauce they want
- Synonym: (often) välja (“choose”)
- to be the one in charge, to be the one calling the shots, to be the one who gets to decide
- Kunderna bestämmer
- Customers (get to) decide
- Jag bestämmer här!
- I am in charge here! / I am the one calling the shots here! / I am the person who decides things here!
- Han bestämmer över skogen
- He is in charge of / gets to decide over / rules the forest
- Kungen bestämde över landet
- The king ruled ("decided over") the country
- Vem bestämmer här?
- Who's in charge / calls the shots here?
- De lät Nisse bestämma
- They let Nisse decide
- Du bestämmer inte över mig!
- You're not my boss!
- to decide (something) from a position of authority
- (reflexive) to decide (as an individual or group)
- De bestämde sig för att beställa pizza
- They decided to order pizza
- Jag kan inte bestämma mig
- I can't make up my mind ("I can't decide")
- to determine (something)
- bestämma avståndet till Jupiter
- determine the distance to Jupiter
- (grammar) to modify
Usage notes
[edit]Like "rule," "be in charge," etc. in sense (sense 1), but general to any role where someone gets to decide things.
Conjugation
[edit]| active | passive | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| infinitive | bestämma | bestämmas | ||
| supine | bestämt | bestämts | ||
| imperative | bestäm | — | ||
| imper. plural1 | bestämmen | — | ||
| present | past | present | past | |
| indicative | bestämmer | bestämde | bestäms, bestämmes | bestämdes |
| ind. plural1 | bestämma | bestämde | bestämmas | bestämdes |
| subjunctive2 | bestämme | bestämde | bestämmes | bestämdes |
| present participle | bestämmande | |||
| past participle | bestämd | |||
1 Archaic. 2 Dated. See the appendix on Swedish verbs.