dra (to pull, draw) | Swedish Grammar

dra is the Swedish verb "to pull, draw," and it is one of the workhorses of the language: literally you dra a rope or a sledge, but figuratively you dra conclusions, dra a curtain, dra something going, and — in everyday speech — you just dra, meaning "take off, leave." Its principal parts run dra – drog – dragit, the a–o–a strong pattern (infinitive a, past o, supine back to a). dra is also one of the handful of contracted strong verbs: the older full infinitive draga still exists in writing and set phrases, but in all normal modern Swedish you say dra.

Principal parts

Infinitive	Present	Preteritum (past)	Supine	Imperative	Group
dra (draga)	drar	drog	dragit	dra	Group 4 (strong), a–o–a (contracted)

Read the vowels across the row: the infinitive and present carry a (dra, drar), the past drops to o (drog), and the supine returns to a (dragit). The agreeing past participle is dragen (en-word), draget (ett-word), dragna (plural/definite) — you will meet it most in compounds like en hopdragen gardin (a drawn-together curtain) and sammandragen (contracted). Note the contracted shape: the present is drar, not dragar, and the imperative is the bare dra.

Dra i spaken så öppnas dörren.

Pull the lever and the door opens. dra — imperative, vowel a.

Hästen drog kärran uppför backen.

The horse pulled the cart up the hill. drog — past, vowel o.

Vi har dragit ut alla sladdar inför ovädret.

We've unplugged all the cables ahead of the storm. har dragit — perfect, supine vowel a.

Use 1: present, past and perfect

The three tenses follow the principal parts directly. The present drar covers both English "pull/draw" and "am pulling/drawing" — Swedish has no separate progressive. The past drog is a bare, vowel-changed stem with no ending. The perfect is har dragit, and the pluperfect is hade dragit.

Tåget drar klockan sju, så vi måste skynda oss.

The train leaves at seven, so we have to hurry. Present drar — here in the 'departs' sense.

Det drog kallt från fönstret hela natten.

There was a cold draught from the window all night. drog — past; opersonal 'det drar' = there's a draught.

Jag har dragit fram en stol åt dig.

I've pulled up a chair for you. har dragit — perfect with the particle fram.

Use 2: dra slutsatser and other set phrases

dra anchors a long list of fixed expressions where English does not use "pull" at all. The most important for any learner is dra slutsatser — "to draw conclusions" — which mirrors English exactly. Others: dra nytta av (benefit from), dra fördel av (take advantage of), dra åt (tighten), dra igång / dra i gång (get something going, kick off).

Man ska inte dra förhastade slutsatser av ett enda test.

You shouldn't draw hasty conclusions from a single test. dra slutsatser = draw conclusions.

Företaget drog stor nytta av det nya avtalet.

The company benefited greatly from the new deal. dra nytta av = benefit from, here in the past drog.

Kan du dra åt den här skruven? Den sitter löst.

Can you tighten this screw? It's loose. dra åt = tighten.

Vi drog igång projektet redan i januari.

We got the project going back in January. dra igång = kick off / get going.

Use 3: the colloquial dra — "leave, take off"

In casual spoken Swedish, dra all on its own means "to leave, head off, scram." It is informal but extremely common, especially among younger speakers and in texting. Jag drar nu is "I'm taking off now / I'm out." It often pairs with iväg for emphasis: dra iväg.

Jag drar nu, vi ses imorgon!

I'm taking off now, see you tomorrow! (informal) dra alone = leave / head out.

Ska vi dra härifrån? Det är jättetråkigt här.

Shall we get out of here? This is super boring. (informal) dra = leave.

A related reflexive is dra sig för (att göra något) — "to be reluctant to / hold back from doing something." And the rude but recognisable dra åt skogen literally "pull toward the forest" is a set-phrase telling someone to get lost.

Han drar sig för att be om hjälp, även när han verkligen behöver det.

He's reluctant to ask for help, even when he really needs it. dra sig för = be reluctant to.

Common Mistakes

❌ Hästen dragade kärran.

Incorrect — dra is strong and takes no -ade ending. The past is the vowel-changed drog.

✅ Hästen drog kärran.

The horse pulled the cart.

❌ Jag dragar i repet.

Incorrect — dra is contracted, so the present is drar, not dragar.

✅ Jag drar i repet.

I'm pulling the rope.

❌ Jag har drog fel slutsats.

Wrong — after har you need the supine dragit, not the past drog.

✅ Jag har dragit fel slutsats.

I've drawn the wrong conclusion.

❌ Vi drog nytta från avtalet.

Wrong preposition — the fixed phrase is dra nytta AV, not 'från'.

✅ Vi drog nytta av avtalet.

We benefited from the deal.

❌ Jag lämnar nu. (intending the casual 'I'm out')

Not wrong, but stiff — for the breezy 'I'm taking off' Swedes say Jag drar nu; lämnar needs an object (lämnar rummet).

✅ Jag drar nu.

I'm taking off now. (informal)

💡

Hook into the pattern, not a cognate: dra – drog – dragit is pure a–o–a, the same skeleton as slå – slog – slagit and ta – tog – tagit. Two things make dra special: it is contracted (present drar, never dragar), and on its own in speech it means "to leave" — Jag drar = "I'm out."

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