frän
Swedish
Etymology
Unknown. Likely related to Norwegian fræna (“to give off a strong odor”). Possibly also related to Norwegian frøyna (“to wrinkle up one's nose, make a wry face”), English frine, English frown.
Adjective
frän (comparative fränare, superlative fränast)
- acrid, strong (having an offensive or intense odor or flavor)
- (figuratively) mean, vicious, caustic (intensely critical)
Declension
| Inflection of frän | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Indefinite | Positive | Comparative | Superlative2 |
| Common singular | frän | fränare | fränast |
| Neuter singular | fränt | fränare | fränast |
| Plural | fräna | fränare | fränast |
| Definite | Positive | Comparative | Superlative |
| Masculine singular1 | fräne | fränare | fränaste |
| All | fräna | fränare | fränaste |
| 1) Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine. 2) The indefinite superlative forms are only used in the predicative. | |||
References
- frän in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
- frän in Svensk ordbok (SO)
- frän in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)
- frän in Elof Hellquist, Svensk etymologisk ordbok (1st ed., 1922)