This is the adjective form you will reach for most: the indefinite declension, also called strong, used whenever the noun is indefinite ("a big car," "big cars," "houses are big"). It has three shapes, and choosing between them is the same gender-and-number decision you already make for the article en/ett. Master this and you can describe almost anything; the definite -a form (next page) is comparatively trivial.
The three forms
Take stor ("big") as the model. The adjective agrees with the noun's gender (singular) and switches to a shared form in the plural:
| Noun | Form | Example | Ending |
|---|---|---|---|
| common (en) singular | stor | en stor bil | base form, no ending |
| neuter (ett) singular | stort | ett stort hus |
|
| plural (any gender) | stora | stora bilar, stora hus |
|
So the rule in one line: base form with en-words, -t with ett-words, -a in the plural. The gender distinction (en vs ett) only matters in the singular; in the plural both genders collapse to the same -a form.
Det var en stor bil, men ett ännu större hus.
It was a big car, but an even bigger house. stor with en bil; the comparison aside, note base form for the en-word.
De bor i ett stort hus med en liten trädgård.
They live in a big house with a small garden. stort (ett hus, neuter -t) vs liten (en trädgård).
Vi behöver två stora väskor för resan.
We need two big suitcases for the trip. stora — plural -a.
Attributive and predicative — both agree
The three forms appear in both positions: in front of the noun (attributive) and after a linking verb like vara ("be"), bli ("become"), verka ("seem") (predicative). English inflects neither, but more to the point, English never inflects the predicative — so the predicative is where learners slip.
Bilen är stor och dyr.
The car is big and expensive. Predicative: stor agrees with bilen (en). dyr likewise.
Huset är stort men trädgården är liten.
The house is big but the garden is small. stort (neuter, predicative -t) vs liten.
Väskorna är tunga — vi måste packa lättare.
The suitcases are heavy — we have to pack lighter. tunga = plural -a, predicative.
A short bank of common adjectives
The pattern is overwhelmingly regular. Here are five everyday adjectives across all three forms — read them aloud as a set:
| Meaning | en-word | ett-word | plural |
|---|---|---|---|
| green | grön | grönt | gröna |
| cheap | billig | billigt | billiga |
| tired | trött | trött | trötta |
| new | ny | nytt | nya |
| warm | varm | varmt | varma |
Two things to notice. First, trött already ends in -tt, so the neuter adds nothing — ett trött barn — because you cannot pile another -t on. Adjectives ending in -t preceded by a consonant or doubled often stay put in the neuter. Second, ny is a vowel stem and doubles to nytt. These edge behaviours are exactly what the neuter page covers in detail.
Min granne har en grön bil och ett grönt staket.
My neighbour has a green car and a green fence. grön (en) vs grönt (ett).
Vi köpte nya gardiner — de gamla var fula.
We bought new curtains — the old ones were ugly. nya = plural -a (and note the definite de gamla, the other declension).
Barnen var trötta efter resan.
The children were tired after the trip. trötta = plural -a; the singular trött wouldn't add a neuter -t anyway.
The neuter -t and vowel stems
The -t form deserves a flag here because it is where spelling can shift. Vowel-final stems double the t: blå → blått, grå → grått, ny → nytt. Stems ending in a stressed vowel behave the same. And some adjectives in -d devoice the d before -t: god → gott, röd → rött. These are not optional flourishes; ett blå hus is simply wrong. The full set of rules is on The Neuter -t.
Det var grått och regnigt hela helgen.
It was grey and rainy the whole weekend. grått — grå doubles the t in the neuter (here predicative with neuter 'det').
Maten luktade gott.
The food smelled good. gott — god devoices d → tt in the neuter.
Don't confuse the plural -a with the definite -a
The single most useful warning on this page: the plural -a (stora bilar) and the definite -a (den stora bilen) look identical, so beginners quietly merge the two systems. Keep them apart by their trigger:
- The -a on this page is triggered by plural number (or by the predicative when the subject is plural): stora bilar, bilarna är stora.
- The -a on the next page is triggered by definiteness — den/det/de, a possessive, a genitive — and it appears even in the singular: den stora bilen, min stora bil.
In other words, if you see -a on an adjective, ask why: is the noun plural (this page), or is it definite (next page)? They overlap in form but not in cause — and they diverge sharply in the singular, where the indefinite declension uses base/-t and the definite always uses -a.
En stor bil blev till två stora bilar, och nu står den stora bilen i garaget.
One big car became two big cars, and now the big car is in the garage. stor (indef sg) → stora (plural) → den stora bilen (definite sg, different trigger, same -a).
Common Mistakes
❌ ett stor hus
Incorrect — a neuter (ett) noun needs the -t form: stort.
✅ ett stort hus
a big house.
❌ stor bilar
Incorrect — the plural needs -a: stora, regardless of gender.
✅ stora bilar
big cars.
❌ Huset är stor.
Incorrect — predicative adjectives agree; huset is neuter, so stort.
✅ Huset är stort.
The house is big.
❌ ett blå hus
Incorrect — vowel stems double the t in the neuter: blått.
✅ ett blått hus
a blue house.
❌ Barnen var trött.
Incorrect — plural subject needs the plural -a: trötta.
✅ Barnen var trötta.
The children were tired.
Key Takeaways
- Base form with en-words, -t with ett-words, -a in the plural: stor / stort / stora. Gender matters only in the singular.
- The same three forms appear attributively (ett stort hus) and predicatively (huset är stort) — and the predicative keeps the indefinite forms even with a definite subject.
- Vowel and -d stems shift in the neuter: blå → blått, god → gott. See The Neuter -t.
- The plural -a and the definite -a look alike but have different triggers (number vs definiteness). Decide by asking why the -a is there.
Now practice Swedish
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Start learning Swedish→Related Topics
- Neuter Agreement: the -t FormA1 — When an adjective describes an ett-word, it takes a -t ending (ett rött hus, huset är rött) — and a small set of regular spelling shifts (röd → rött, glad → glatt) and invariable adjectives (bra, kul) account for nearly every case English speakers get wrong.
- The Definite (Weak) Declension (-a)A2 — The adjective form used in definite phrases — almost always -a regardless of gender and number (den stora bilen, det stora huset, de stora bilarna), with an optional -e for a known male referent (den unge mannen).
- Irregular and Invariable AdjectivesB1 — The adjectives that break the regular -t / -a pattern: invariables that never change (bra, kul, rosa), stems that drop their unstressed vowel (gammal → gamla, vacker → vackra, öppen → öppna), and the wildly suppletive liten (liten / litet / lilla / små).
- Grammatical Gender: en and ettA1 — Swedish's two-gender system — common-gender en-words (~75%) and neuter ett-words (~25%) — and the honest truth that gender is mostly arbitrary and learned per word. Plus the genuine tendencies that cut the guesswork (unstressed -a is almost always en), and why gender matters: it drives the article, the definite ending, and the -t neuter form on adjectives.